Feel the Rain on Your Skin
by lovemenot-o6
Summary: The rain falls from the heavy clouds as lightninng streaks across the night sky, calling on the low rumble of thunder. Sakura sits on a branch, unaware of the onyx eyes on her. She smiles, and then everything plunges into a pool of darkness... SasuXSaku
1. Feel the rain on your skin

**Chapter 1**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto**

**Please enjoy!**

* * *

A cool wind drifted down from the dark clouds circling just above the temporary campsite, hidden under the trees protective canopy.

A small, petite figure stood with her hand resting against the bark of a branch, her feet spread apart so that she could keep her balance against the brutal wind that was threatening to carry her away.

As she tilted her head to gaze back down at the sleeping forms below her, she silently made an oath to protect them, no mater what happened on the mission she was just recently assigned to. She refused to stand back in the sidelines and watch as her friends fought with their very lives on the line. No longer will she become a hindrance. A deadweight.

No. This time she would do something usefull. This time, she wouldn't get in the way. It was all up to her now.

With a small smile on her face, she turned back to face the upcoming storm that was headed their way.

Sparks of lightning could be seen miles of ways as a loud crack of thunder shook the trees sturdy branches. The figure instinctively jumped away from the violently shaking branch to land on the soft ground below, now muddied from the silent drops of rain that came down from the ever darkening sky.

'_Sakura...?'_

The form turned her head to the left to see a certain blonde huddled in his sleeping bag, kept dry by the green tinted tent propped up against the sturdy surface of a nearby tree trunk, perfectly camouflaged with the forest surroundings.

Her gaze drifted from his sleeping form to the crackling fire that hissed with each raindrop that touched its dying embers.

With a smile lifted on the corners of her delicate face, she began to gently poke the burning flames in order to keep warm, watching as the wood cracked and erupted small sparks of light into the air. Almost like fireworks. Leaning her head back against her shoulders, she gently began to rub her stiff shoulders, smoothing out the tense muscles underneath. She then proceded to tilt her head side to side, sighing as her neck popped on either side of her head. How she envied Naruto and Kakashi for having the opportunity to sleep the night away, safe and warm under the sheltering cloth.

Goosebumps began to appear alongside her arms just at the mere thought of it. With one hand draped around her huddled knees, the small figure pulled up a tan hood that concealed her shivering body.

'_Sakura….'_

A lump began to form in her constricted throat. '_How has it come to this…'_ The form shook her head, letting a small pink strand escape from under the shelter of her thin cloak.

_'I just don't understand…' _She closed her eyes trying to fight back the tears that clung to her. _'Sasuke…' _

Sakura felt a yawn crawling up into the back of her throat, but forced it not to make its presence known. A few seconds later, Sakura felt her mind slide into a troubled sleep, her back resting against a nearby tree.

**(Flashback)**

_The sides of her ribs were beginning to ache with the struggle to breathe as she raced through the gates of Konoha with Naruto clamped tightly around her shoulders. _

_They both had severe cuts all over their bodies, she had tried to heal the worst of the wounds…but with that battle, she and Naruto were drained of chakra and risked fainting from chakra depletion. She had to hurry._

_She forced herself to move faster by pushing the last of her chakra towards her feet, determination written throughout her eyes. _'Naruto…'

_The gash in her side was beginning to bleed again as her wound re-opened. She felt herself flinch at the needle like pain that shot up her side with every step she took. She was drenched in Naruto's sweat as well as her own. _

_Her lungs were begging her to stop, her muscles screaming for her to take a break. She could feel the trickle of blood on the nape of her neck, but pushed the thought a side. _

_'_Faster, we have to move faster…before they…**'**

"_Naruto! Hang on just a little while longer, we're almost to the Hospital…" She whispered . _

_Naruto, who was already half unconscious, could only let out a soft grunt in reply._

_She was now gasping for air, not to mention she was feeling rather light headed and her eyesight kept drifting in and out of consciousness. _

'I'm loosing to much blood..'_She thought. _

_As they neared the hospital, a few shinobi stopped to stare at the passing figures flying on top off the rooftops, their pace never slowing down as the pink haired shinobi burst through the hospital doors, her hand clutching to a nearby wall for support. _

_A few nurses tried to calm the frantic pink haired woman, but before any of them could lay a hand on her, she collapsed to the ground in a pool of blood along with the now unconscious blonde…_

**Snap!!!!**

**(End of flashback)**

The petite girl jumped up from her position by the fire with a kunai held close to her now sweating form.

She stared at the direction from which the sound came from, eyes penetrating the surrounding darkness. Taking a step foward, she threw her kunai at the nearby brush, her muscles tensed in case anything came out.

Silence met her.

The hood fell from her head, exposing her shoulder length pink hair, with the red leaf ninja headband tied neatly behind her ears. Her bright green orbs took in everything around her, leaving nothing untouched by her sharp hues.

Her cheeks were a rosy red, lips chapped from the cold. A crack of thunder tore her gaze away from the forest to the sky, as tiny droplets of water began to pour down from the inky black sky.

Her breathing slowed down from its sharp, rapid gasps to calm, controlled intakes of air.

She began to reach out with her chakra in order to scan the surrounding area for any signs of an unwanted presence, but came up empty handed. It wasn't long before she was drenched head to toe in the rain water.

'_So it is you after all…'_

"Hey Sakura! What are you doing out there in the rain like that? Are trying to catch a cold or somethin?"

A blond headed shinobi popped his head out from the shelter of his tent. At the mention of the pink haired Kunoichi's name, Sakura turned her attention from the omnious clouds to face her most beloved friend, Naruto, with a sheepish smile painted on her face.

"No, I'm fine Naruto," She lied.

Sakura met Naruto's speculating gaze with one of her fake smiles.

"You should probably get some more sleep, the sun wont be coming up for another few hours and….."

"You were thinking back to that day weren't you," Naruto cut in with a blank look on his face, his fists curled up into a tight ball by his side. Sakura could only look away. The rain was beginning to let up now, and she silently pulled her hair across her shoulders to squeez the rain water out of her salmon-pink locks.

"Of course not. I just thought I heard a sound is all." Sakura flung her hair back into its rightful position and gave him a thumbs up before jumping up onto her lookout post.

The clouds were beginning to move west, as the cool north wind blew against her shivering body.

'_If this weather doesn't let up soon, I'm sure to have a severe cold by morning' _She thought with a smirk on her face. Before Sakura could turn back to the campsite to retrieve a thicker cloak, a flash of orange and black caught her by the wrist.

"Hey Sakura, Ill take the rest of the watch. You should go ahead and get some rest while you still can." Naruto said with a wink before releasing her hand. "Don't forget about our mission , okay? I mean, we cant have a tired medic Nin with us all day tomorrow!" Naruto called out with one of his goofy grins lighting his face.

Sakura couldn't help but give out a shaky laugh.

"Don't worry too much about me Naruto, I can take care of myself." Sakura replied with a grin on her face. "Dont forget who saved you after ..._that_ fatal blow. The one with Orochimaru and Kabuto." Flashes of Sasuke suddenly began to flash across her mind as Sakura said the snake Sannin's name. Sakura's head came down as a burst of anger flared up inside her.

She lifted her fist up into the air and punched a nearby tree as a source to rid her frustration, pretending that it was Sasukes face for a moment.

Sakura could hear her inner self scream out in horror at what she just thought.

_'You know that you still hold feelings for Sasuke-kun!' _

_'Dont you have something better to do!?'_ Sakura thought back fiercely.

'_Just admit it. You do still hold feelings for him!'_

_'Ill do no such thing!! He left Konoha, Naruto and Kakashi!' _Sakura let all of her depression slip away into her concious. '_He left me....'_

Not even Sakura's inner self could deny that little fact.

Naruto reached out with his hand to try and comfort the shaking girl, but pulled back when he saw the deep crack in the tree. "Dont worry Sakura-chan. We'll bring him back just as I promised to you all those years ago!"

"It doesnt matter. He'll just run away again..." Sakura knew it was true, and so did Naruto.

A sad smile made its way to her lips as she thought back to there Genin days.

_'And to think that i used to be one of his crazy fan girls...'_

Naruto let a smirk light up his face as he casually pulled his hands behind his head, undetered by her words. "Yeah, whatever you say Sakura-chan! Even if he does, we'll just drag him back."

Naruto looked up into the night sky before turning back to face Sakura again. "Alright well I'm off." Naruo said with a thumbs up.

Naruto glanced over his shoulder one last time as he jumped higher into the tree-tops. "Try and get some sleep Sakura-chan."

"Yeah." Sakura replied with a jerky nod.

Sakura stood on the slick tree branch a little shocked, before nodding her head in thanks. She then reached out with her hand to try and suppress a yawn as her eyes began to flutter close.

_'I guess I never noticed how tired I was…' _Sakura thought back to herself. With one last glance at the retreating blonde headed shinobi, she turned on her heels and hopped down from her perch to snuggle her way into the warm blankets already laid out for her near Naruto's tent.

'_You were always looking after me, Naruto...' _She thought with a yawn escaping her lips. She dug her head closer into her soft pillow before she slipped into unconsciousness, taken away by a dreamless sleep.

'…_.Sakura'_

It was then that the direction of the wind changed, and a retreating figure disappeared from within the forest, leaving behind nothing but the peaceful night and a silent promise.

'_They will be glad to hear about you, cheery blossom…'_

And with that, he took off, a smile creeping upon his face.

* * *

**(A/N) **Hmm...so i wonder who that could be?

Alright, so first chapter up! (YAY!) Second chapter will probably be up tomorrow, seeing how I've already written it :)

Yep. I haven't really thought up a plot just yet, so I'm just following wherever my words take me :) And don't you worry, sasuke will be making his appearence in the next chapter

(I hope this story turns out ok!! Cross your fingers!) Ok, so thanks for reading!! PLEASE REVIEW!


	2. Gone with the wind

**Chapter 2**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto**

**Please enjoy!**

* * *

The sun was just rising when Sakura felt a gentle tug on her shoulder.

"Sakura, were moving out." Kakashi said. "Pack up your things." Sakura waited until she couldn't here his footsteps any longer.

'_There's now way it could be morning already…' _With a sleepy groan, Sakura propped herself up with her elbows, when she felt a strange soreness in her arms and legs. From what she could tell, she didn't remember doing anything that could cause her muscles to feel like they've been tugged in every direction known to man.

With a quick intake of breath, Sakura quickly sought out the worst sores, and summoning her chakra to her hand, she gently pressed down on each sore spot and began to relax the tense muscle underneath her flesh. Sakura couldn't help but let out a sigh of relief when she could finally move her limbs.

"Hey Sakura-chan! You ready to get going!?" Naruto shouted from the other side of her make-shift tent. One moment later, Sakura saw the cheerful smile of her best friend pop into her tent. He strode in casually with his hands by his side, seeing as Sakura wasn't changing clothes or anything.

"Hey Naruto! I'll be ready in just a sec, I'm just going to go over by that waterfall you found a few miles up ahead and refill the water bottles." Sakura smiled up at him as she took up three small water bottles and strode out of the tent, Naruto left staring at her back.

"Are you sure you'll be okay by yourself!" Naruto called after her.

"Naruto! Ill be just fine! It will only take a few seconds!" Sakura turned her head so that she could give Naruto a quick reassuring smile. Before she left, she quickly grabbed her belt that secured all of her ninja tools and tied it just under her left thigh. "Tell Kakashi-sensei to meet me there, will ya Naruto?"

"Ya, sure thing Sakura-chan!" Naruto then jumped up to meet Kakashi, and after a few quick hand seals, both disappeared in a cloud of smoke, but not before giving Sakura one last worried glance over his shoulder.

"Be sure to hurry back Sakura…" Sakura then grabbed her Leaf ninja headband and tied it securely just under her neck, in its usual spot.

"There. That should do it!" Sakura mumbled to herself as she tightened the not even tighter. After that, Sakura took to the trees.

* * *

"You've been eyeing that girl for quite some time now, Sasuke. What's gotten into you?" asked a white haired man.

He wore a black cloak that carried many water bottles and his teeth were all pointed and jagged as if somebody had put a sharks jaw into a mans body. On his back was a giant sword that towered over his body.

As he eyed the quiet man beside him, he couldn't help but notice the way Sasuke's hand would clench in a fist before relaxing again.

His body was hunched over a nearby branch that hung just above the gentle river that led to a small waterfall, where a pink haired Kunoichi sat peacefully.

Her hair was dripping wet from the clear, ice cold water, which seemed to frame her face quite nicely.

Her clothes were damp from the cool mist that the waterfall emitted, clinging to every curve of her body, and she let her feet dangle into the calm waters just a few feet away from the roaring water. Beside her was a small pouch that carried all of her ninja tools along with three filled water bottles. Her emerald eyes never left the surene pool of water as it silently, and without complaint, traveled down to the river bed.

"Just give it up Suigetsu, cant you tell that Sasuke-kun has no time to answer your stupid question!?" A red haired woman shouted out, her flaming scarlet locks flaring up in the wind, glistening in the pale sun-shine. A second later, the woman found herself with a firm hand clamped over her mouth. She immediately began to blush at the thought of Sasuke's skin against _her_ lips!

"Both of you shut-up." Came a calm, but firm voice. Sasuke tore his gaze away from the pink haired Kunoichi to stare both of them in the eye, his sharingan activated. "Just because our chakras are masked, doesn't mean she cant hear our voices," He said with annoyance thick in his voice. Still keeping his hand on the woman's mouth, Sasuke turned his attention back to the pink haired leaf Kunoichi.

He watched as her figure became tense, a kunai held in her hand, ready for anything. Sasuke listened intently until he felt a firm hand wrapped around his wrist. He looked up to face the woman.

"Sasuke! Something's wrong." The woman's words came out in a rush with panic apparent in her eyes. "Juugo's chakra is closing in rapidly….and its getting stronger." There was a moment of silence between Sasuke and the woman before realization finally set in.

_'Damn it!' _Sasuke thought as he silently cursed himself for not keeping an eye on the large man. '_He must've spotted Sakura…' _

"What do you want us to do?" The woman asked, adjusting her glasses while she closed her eyes in concentration.

Sasuke barely had time to reply before a large blonde man shot out behind a large tree, creating a giant hole in the ground right behind Sakura. Before she had time to react, a large fist landed right where she once stood, creating a large crack in the earth. Sakura barely had time to move out of the way before he brought another fist down.

She caught it skillfully in her left hand before he heard the crunch of bones. Juugo let out a scream of pain before he brought his right leg up and threw Sakura aside, knocking the breathe out of her.

"KILL….I NEED…TO KILL!" Shouted the large blonde man. He lunged for Sakura with his fist raised up in the air. Sakura sucked in a painful breath of air before lunging out of the way of Juugo's wrath.

Seconds later, Juugo's fist landed where Sakura's head recently stood, causing the sturdy trunk to turn into nothing but a pile of splinters. Before the large blonde man had time to turn his head and block Sakura's attack, he was met with a chakra infused fist right to his gut. Juugo felt all the oxygen in his body escape his lips, as he crumpled to the ground, clutching his gut with his right hand.

"Who the hell are you!" Sakura shouted out, popping each of her knuckles with her hands before pulling up what looked to be black fighting gloves. The large blonde man looked up, glaring at her figure, before leaping into the air and disappearing into the trees. Sakura jumped up after him, lunging another chakra infused fist for the retreating man. "Don't think that you can just run away!"

Sasuke mentally cringed at the sound of more bones cracking. Juugo let out another hiss of pain as he caught the girl by her throat.

"KILL…I MUST…" Juugo's fist clamped tightly around the Kuniochi's small throat. Sasuke watched as the pink haired shinobi reached out with a cry to get a hold of Juugo's hand. He never let his eyes stray away from her tired face.

Enjoying the sight of the woman struggling in his grasp, Juugo's hand tightened, slowly sqeezing the life out of her piercing green gaze. Sasuke tensed his muscles, ready to spring, when a cloud of smoke enveloped the lithe pinkette. Shocked, Juugo took a step back, releasing his grip on the piece of wood he was holding onto, instead of the neck of his prey.

"Gotcha!" Sakura shouted out from her hiding spot behind the wall of water, a small smile played on her face. Reaching out with her chakra scalpels, that Tsunade was lucky enough to teach her, she swiftly immobilized the large mans left arm by cutting a certain nerve.

Not giving him any time to react, she skidded on her feet and knocked Juugo's feet out from under him.

Sakura felt the ground shake as the large man's knees buckled and he collapsed onto the ground. Sakura began to back away, but before she could get far, Juugo's right hand shot up grabbed hold of her left ankle, pulling her down into the ground.

Once again, Sakura felt the breath being knocked out of her body. Juugo's hand pulled her closer to him until he got a firm hold on her leg, and then tightened his fist into a tight ball. Sakura never had the chance to react as a sharp and violent pain shot up through her, a loud crack echoing in her ears as the bone in her upper leg shattered.

Sakura bit back a cry of pain as she tried to make the large man release his grip on her, but that only made him squeeze even harder, causing another round of pain to shoot through her as the bone in her leg shifted. '_This is bad…' _Sakura thought desperately. _'I already used up most of my chakra trying to dodge his attacks, not to mention the energy it took me to try and get up here. Last night really took a toll on me.' _Sakura then took in a slow deep breath, which caused her body to shake with pain and closed her eyes in concentration.

'_I have to push the pain aside and concentrate. I haven't trained this hard for two and a half years just so I could get killed by a single, stuck-up, block headed, idiot of a shinobi! I'm the Hockage's apprentice! And I'm sure as _hell _not going to loose to this guy!' _Sakura thought with determination burning in her eyes.

* * *

Sasuke sat back in the trees branches as he watched the girls face screw up in pain. His body became tense as he watched Sakura's eyes close, thinking that she may have gone unconscious. He was fixing to spring after her when he saw a flash of pink rip out of Juugo's grip and land a hard kick to his side.

Once he saw that she had regained her balance, he looked down to examine her badly injured leg. Blood was flowing freely down her side and there was some purple bruises left by Juugo's hand mark.

He watched Sakura's face flicker with pain as she put a little of her body's weight on her injury. No doubt that it was broken in more places than one.

'_Shit…there's no way ill be able to use this leg now! Not good..' _Sakura thought back fiercely. Never lifting her eyes from Juugo's face, Sakura gingerly reached down with her hand and began to heal the shattered bones. The green chakra that emitted from her fingertips felt comfortably warm against her ice cold skin.

Before she could finish healing the injury properly, a large knee grazed the side of her face.

'_What the- …. But when did he-' _Before Sakura could finish her thought, she felt a sharp pain in the back of her neck.

A second later, the blonde man had her thrown up into the air. His fist was about to come crashing down on her abdomen. Thinking fast, Sakura took hold of her kunai and thrust it into his arm, trying to avoid any fatal blow if she could help it.

She felt the tip of her weapon dig into his soft flesh, and watched as his entire arm slowly become engulfed in his dark, red blood. It made her sick to look at, so she turned away, ignoring the pain that seared through her as a fist rammed into her side, cracking a couple of ribs.

Sakura felt her body fall, gravity pulling her down. Sakura expected to land on a tree limb, or at least the creek, but instead she felt a warm body grasp her tightly around her waist, causing her to suppress a scream of pain that shot through her. Her eyes fluttered open in shock at the touch. _'Is…it…Naruto..!?'_

She felt a soft thump ripple through her as the person who was now cradling her bridal style, gentle laid her down on the ground.

Once she felt the hands leave her body, Sakura tried to sit up so that she could asses her injuries, but was forced down by a firm hand on her shoulder.

"Now Suigetsu!" came a sharp voice just above where she lay. Before Sakura realized what was happening, a large man with a sword tied securely on his back came charging after Juugo. Sakura felt a large weight hauled off her body, and was thankful to whomever it was that got the man off her back.

"Karin, hold him down!" came the same sharp voice.

'_That voice…' _Sakura thought back, her eyesight going fuzzy. _'Where have I heard that voice…It…It sounds so familiar.' _Sakura tried to push herself off the ground to see who had called the command, but felt a the same stern hand on her shoulder, forcing her to lie back down on the ground once again. Sakura gritted her teeth in annoyance before she kicked out with both of her legs, ignoring the needle like pain that made its way around her body from the jerky movement.

"Let go of me!" Sakura shouted, or tried to shout out anyways, anger filled in her soft voice. Even though she was low on chakra, she managed to kick up enough energy to struggle out of his grip, but as soon as she tried to move away, she felt another strong grip on her shoulder.

"Stop struggling. Your causing yourself more pain than necessary." Came the same stern reply. Already , he had her two hands behind her back, pinning her down.

"Like I care!" Sakura retorted. "Now get your hands off of me!"

Sasuke stared down at the woman struggling in his grasp, unable to keep an amused smirk off his usually blank face.

"I'm sorry, but I'm afraid I cant do that." Sasuke said with a smirk still on his face.

"The Hell you can!"

Sakura knew she was in no condition to argue, but she did it anyways. Already, she could feel the effects of the battle on her worn-out body. Blood was beginning to gather around her leg in a pool and small trickles were now sliding down her cheeks and collar bone.

She tried her best to stay conscious, and began to order her body to stay awake. But soon, her eyes drifted closed, her body in shutdown mode. _'I'm loosing too much blood…just like last time.' _The last thing she felt before her mind slipped away was the feeling of hands scooping her body up, securing her against a warm muscular chest.

"Sasuke-kun! What do you think your doing!" Karin eyed the unconscious woman with a sense of disgust.

"What's wrong Karin?" Suigetsu asked with an ever widening grin. "Not _jealous_are you?" Suigetsu was looking intently on Karin's face for any signs of emotion. He smirked when he saw Karin's face twist with anger and annoyance.

"SHUT-UP SUIGETSU!" Karin shouted back. "What do you know anyways?!"

Suigetsu rolled his eyes before turning back to Juugo, who was sitting with his back against a tree.

"Hey Juugo! You okay?"

"Hn." The blonde man stood up with some difficulty. One of his arms was immobilized while the other arm had a deep puncture wound. Karin rushed over to help sturdy the man before turning to Sasuke.

"Sasuke-kun, Juugo's injured. We need to get him to a medic and fast."

"Wow Karin. I'm impressed! I didn't know that you held such a caring side," Suigetsu sneered. Karin turned to give him a deadly look that would have put any shinobi onto his knees, but other than that, Karin kept quiet and instead turned back to face Sasuke to find him lost in thought.

"Thank you for stopping me," Juugo suddenly said, his head bowed low.

When he looked up, he stared at the unconscious body in Sasuke's arm.

He swallowed the bile that rose in his throat at the mere sight of her. '_I've done it again…'_Juugo thought horrified.

He clenched his fist together, causing more blood to spill onto the earth. "Is….is she okay?" Juugo asked without lifting his gaze from the ground. But he was only met with silence.

"Eh…Sasuke-kun?" Karin cautiously put a concerned hand on his shoulder, causing him to turn around and snap out of his day dream.

"What," Came his sharp reply. His eyes were still on the woman he held so tightly in his arms, the sharingan still activated.

Taken aback by his tone, Karin simply turned her head away. "We need to find someplace safe to sleep." She said quietly.

Sasuke nodded his head in agreement before looking back down at the limp body in his arms.

And with that, they took off into the setting sun, all the while watching Sakura's lips move as they kept forming the words Naruto…

'_Naruto…. Where are you..'_

* * *

**(A/N) **You see! I told you that Sasuke would make his appearance in this chapter. Ya, i'm not to happy with this chapter...I feel as if its lacking something. Care to give me a hint? :) (Also, give some ideas about what you want to see happen! i'm writing this story just for you guys!)

The next chapter should be out no later than next week, so just bear with me! ill do my best and try not to keep you waiting! Thanks again!

REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW!!!


	3. Nightmares

_**Chapter 3**_

_**Disclaimer: i do not own Naruto**_

**_Please enjoy!_**

* * *

Naruto sat with his arms crossed over his chest, his foot tapping impatiently as he sat down on a bench, waiting for Kakashi sensei. The sun was already beginning to set as he stared out towards the deep wooded trees.

Kakashi-sensei had left him out side a bookstore to wait as he ran through the little wooden door to grab the newest edition of his perverted book. He had said that he wouldn't be long, but knowing his sensei, he would probably loose track of time.

They were supposed to be gathering information about the Akatsuki and there where abouts, but had run into _this! _

So once again, it was up to him to drag Kakashi out by the back of the collar, and turn to race towards the waterfall where he knew Sakura would be waiting as a panicked ninja dog raced towards them.

'_Damn it!' _was the last thing he thought before he felt his heart rise to his throat. His feet took off towards the waterfall as fast as they could carry him. Using his chakra to propel him further and further away from the now retreating village, feeling his body moving faster and faster through the blurred trees, a strange memory began to float back to him from the back of his mind.

_**(Flashback)**_

_The pounding of his heart in his head made the weak and injured Naruto open his eyes for the first time in days. _

_As he silently waited for his blurred vision to clear, the sudden sound of battle roared inside his bandaged head, bringing back a sense of anger and a burning sense of revenge to rise into the empty pit of his stomach._

_His throat felt cracked and dry as his lips began to bleed from the overwhelming sense of heat flowing down inside his bones, even though his skin felt like ice._

_The throbbing headache inside his head that was once a violent pulse began to die down into a dull throb as he finally gained a small sense of his surroundings._

_With bandages wrapped all around his body, he had found it difficult to move. _

_He could tell by the vicious growl in his stomach and stiff muscles that he had been out for quite a while. Naruto closed his eyes and listened to the steady heart monitor beside him, keeping time to an odd rhythm that unsettled his mind. The sound of near by voices and the sticky smell of sterilization made him prop his head up on the little piece of cloth they call a pillow, and stare out toward the door that was shut tight._

_I must be in a hospital. '_But how did I get here…'

_With a soft sigh, Naruto let the thought slip away from his mind and instead gave thanks for the fact that he had somehow wound up there. _

_He had thought for sure that he was a goner when the sound shinobi ambushed him and Sakura while she was tending to an elderly family near the sound's border that requested for her services. Naruto had only been accompanying her as a body guard, seeing how she would be low on chakra when she was done…_

_That's when his mind suddenly gave out a sharp cry. _'Sakura! Where is she!' _Naruto cried out from somewhere in the back of his mind. Taking a deep, shaky breath, Naruto sent the little chakra he had in search for his best friends chakra presence, but found nothing. _

'I swear, if those sound ninjas did anything to hurt her, ill kill them with my own two hands…'_ Naruto clenched his fist into a tight ball, tugging an IV in his arm and causing a small trickle of blood to spill out. _

_Naruto shut his eyes tight and began to think on a more positive level. For one, Sakura had become a legend in her medical skills, and knew how to defend herself in such cases as this. He knew that she could take care of herself. There's no way she was going to let a sound ninja take her down! Not after what they did to Sasuke…._

_Naruto dropped his gaze from the door to stare at the puffy whit sheets that lay onto of him. _

_But still… after healing those wounds and trying to get rid of the many infections roaming inside their bodies…the time it took her.. It must have been serious._

_And that wasn't even the worst of the injuries inflicted on the old couple…. How could someone like them come up with wounds like those? And then there was that little girl. _

_Naruto clenched his jaw at the memory of her, his stiff form trembling. Her skin was so white and pale, sweat beads lining her upper brows and fore head from a fever. There was blood sliding down her chin and arms as she leaned over coughed up at least three ounces of blood. Her body was also badly bruised, with the evidence of assault. When Sakura raised the back of the little girls white night gown, now coated with red blotches of blood, naruto had to turn away from the site or risk vomiting. How Sakura could handle such matters was a miracle._

_Along her spine were 4 deep gashes, struck from a whip, as well as foot prints that left purple and green blotches all along upper and lower back. One little skin-to-skin contact from Sakura's gentle touch brought the girl crying from the pain as well as a hint of fear. It was a wonder how she didn't die from her injuries. _

_Sakura used up most of her chakra as well as some of his own just for the girl, not to mention the elder couple. When he and Sakura asked about how the girl was given such fatal injuries, the couple sadly looked away and said that one night they heard a knock on the door. When they answered it, they were shocked to see 8 shinobi outside their little cottage, holding a paper bag that looked to have a body inside. They then proceeded in to their cottage, un-invited and unwelcome, and gave them the injuries they had now._

_Once they left, they threw the paper bag inside their wooden roof, and watched , horrified, as a little girl spilled out._

_That was when they called for Sakura to come and help them. They knew that she was the only one who could save the child as anybody else would take her for dead. The procedures Sakura had to do had totally drained her of chakra, but the little girl's injuries were no longer life threatening._

_In return for Sakura's help, the offered her to stay for the night._

_Seeing how Sakura was dead on her feet, he had openly accepted their offering, gratitude evident in his voice. And then to find all of sakura's hard work in a thick pool of blood…._

'_**Don't think about it!'**__ Naruto shouted __from somewhere in his sub-conscious. Clearing his head from the horrifying memory Naruto turned his drifting gaze from the sheets to see a living chair pulled up beside his bed. He could tell by the imprints and the warmth of the cushion that some one had been sitting and watching him not too long ago. His gaze then drifted back towards the window._

'Its still dark out…' _he thought with an odd smile on his face. He couldn't quite put a finger on it, but something just didn't feel right. '_Sakura…please be alright_.'_

_**( End of Flashback )**_

Breaking out of his day dream, Naruto began to feel a small shiver crawl up his spine. Something was definitely wrong. With a quick nod, he pushed himself even faster. Kakashi had sent Pakkun after Sakura's trail once the Nin dog had explained himself.

Not waiting for Kakashi to catch up, Naruto's thought then went back to previously that day…

He had tried to tell Kakashi that Sakura was left all alone up there, and that he didn't like leaving her by herself so close to the sounds border. Not after last time anyways.

Kakashi nodded his head in agreement after a flash of memories came back to him. He silently bit his thumb and summoned one of his top Ninja dogs to go and look after Sakura, and to report back immediately if anything was to go wrong.

Naruto had felt a little bit more at ease at the thought of having a ninja dog by her side, but wished that he could go along too. Unfortunately, with the sound ninjas so close, and the Akatsuki members having been spotted here, Kakashi had not wanted him out of his sight, believing that Sakura would be just fine…After all, she is a shinobi. He had to trust that she could take care of herself.

* * *

As Naruto and Kakashi landed in an open clearing near the waterfall, they could tell that a battle had just recently taken place.

Blood was splattered on a severe amount of trees, the ground torn up with patches of dirt and rocks lying everywhere. A few feet away from the shattered trees lay a large crack in the earth, large enough to swallow several amounts of trees and earth in its dark prison. Several large holes were imprinted on the ground from a fist having been slammed down… and then they saw it.

Sakura's head band along with a small puddle of blood.

Naruto felt his heart drop into the pit of his stomach, and his breath caught in the back of his throat.

'_Damn it!' _Naruto thought with such intensity that even the Kyuubi began to feel a little unsettled_. 'I should have been here to protect her!' _Naruto began to silently curse himself as he lifted his fist into the air and brought it down on a large boulder next to him, creating a shower of small pebbles.

Next to him, Kakashi stood motionless. His body tensed and ready for action.

"Pakkun. Can you smell any other scents around here besides Sakura's?" Kakashi choked on the last part of the sentence, his voice filled with pure anger. He should have been down here… _'Damn it all!'_

The little pug put his nose to the ground as he jumped from branch to branch, taking in every little scent

around him. His body went stiff when he came near the small puddle of blood that belonged to Sakura.

"I think I've got something." he called out softly.

"Well?" Kakashi and Naruto both asked , their voice thick with annoyance and agitation.

They small dog lifted his gaze from the ground, his eyes wide with shock.

"It's Sasuke's."

* * *

Sakura's body leaned against a giant tree trunk, a black piece of cloth pulled over her body to protect her from the cold.

As team Hebi started a fire, Sasuke walked over to her still form, watching as her chest rose and fell with an even pace. After bandaging Juugos injuries, he had come over to asses the injury inflicted to her leg and neck., but had soon found that the woman had come down with a fever after putting a hand up onto her sweating forehead.

Her skin was drained of its usual color, and he found a twing of worry form its way into his stomach, but quickly shook it away. It had felt alien inside his cold body after feeling nothing for so long.

He quickly grabbed another blanket from Suigetsu's pack knowing that he wouldn't mind after taking a liking to the innocent girl, and draped it over her shivering form. The fever was probably caused from exhaustion and lack sleep.

Ever since the girl had gone un-conscious, she had been murmuring the same name over and over again.

'_Naruto.'_ The thought sent a burning sensation rush through his veins.

"Don't touch…her."

Sasuke stared down at the un-conscious girl as her lips moved and a strained voice came crying out.

"I can…save her…" Sakura's hand began to twitch as she fought back the nightmare that was swallowing her mind.

"I can save her…I know...i can..." Sakura's mumblings suddenly stopped as her eyes fluttered open, her breaths coming in rapid gasps.

But soon, her eyes began to close , and her mumblings ceased to exist as her troubled sleep caught her in its grasp once again. She continued to toss and turn until finally her mind gave her some peace.

Sasuke stared at her for a long while before he stood up and walked over to sit in between Juugo and Karin.

"What was that all about?" Karin piped up after a while.

Silence was the only answer she got.

All of them were deeply disturbed by Sakura's strange mumblings. Sasuke couldn't help but wonder if something had happened to her after he went away to Orochimaro.

They all sat in silence for a while, watching the dying embers of their fire slip away into the night sky.

Sasuke silently made a vow to find the source of her night mare.

_'So you do care about her..' _came an inner voice inside of Sasuke.

_'No.'_ Sasuke thought sharply. _'I dont. But if this continues like it has been, none of us will get any sleep.'_

_'Yeah...sure.'_

Juugo sat down across from the frail Sakura, feeling a bile rise in his throat as he spotted the dried blood on her skin, and her ghastly skin tone. He couldnt help but feel pity for the girl as well as a since of regret for what he had done. It wasnt his fault, he tried to control the urge when he spotted the girl, but for some reason, he just hadn't tried hard enough in his mind. Juugo tore his gaze away from her to look at the gathering clouds in the sky.

'L_ooks like its going to rain again.' _He thought with tired look on his face. Still fiddling with his thumbs, Juugo stood up with a yawn, just as he felt a raindrop land on his nose.

"Well, I'm going to bed. That battle has me beat," Juugo called out suddenly, catching everybody by surprise.

"Ya, I'm with you there," Suigetsu added with a nod of his head before standing up to stretch and stomping off to his tent with a wave goodnight.

After a few minutes passed, Karin sat up and began making her way to Sasuke, a deep blush flushing her face. She began to play with her hair as an attempt to flirt with Sasuke before she called out with her most innocent and seductive voice.

"Well Sasuke-kun, I thought those two would never leave us alone together…" Karin glanced up to the sleeping girl. "Well, as alone as you could get anyways." Karin added with a disgusted look at the pale, frail body that was now dreaming softly for the first time since they had brought her here.

"Hn."

"So,…how about we leave and go somewhere more private?" Karin asked with another poisonous glare toward the pink haired shinobi, before moving closer and putting her hand on top of Sasuke's.

At the feel of Karin's touch, Sasuke swatted her hand away before standing up and glaring at the brunette haired woman.

"Karin. Get the hell away from me."

"But Sasuke-kun -"

"Now!"

This time, Karin flinched away from him, seeing the hidden threat under his tone and words, before stomping back off to her tent, cursing silently to her self. She turned around one last time before rain drops started to fall from the night sky.

Sasuke waited until he heard Karins footsteps enter the tent and the sound of a zipper closing reached his ears before dare sat back down. He began to put out the fire before a small frail voice reached his ears once more.

"I wont let you die.." Sakura said in a hushed tone, that . "I'm…here for…you." Sakura's hands were clenched into to tight balls by her side, clutching the blanket so hard he could see blood spill out from her brand new cuts.

Sasuke turned back toward the girl mumbling in her dreams again. He gently grasped her fists, and as gently as he could, began to uncurl her fingers. With a dampened cloth, he gently wiped away her beaded brow, trying to cool the fever down, before taking her into his arms and taking her inside his tent for the night, just as the rain began to fall. There was no way he was going to let her sleep out in the rainy, frosty air, just so she could catch a cold, even though he suspected she already caught one.

As he walked through the protecting shelter, he gently laid her down and pressed the damp cloth to her forehead once again, before he pulled the blankets over her shivering body. He could tell by the touch of her skin, and how blistering hot it was, that her fever was fighting what ever it was that was flowing through her body. But was it a virus she was fighting or her dream..?

As sasuke watched her breathing slow, he stood up and took a seat beside her sweltering body, never letting his eyes stray away from her face.

With a hesitant hand, Sasuke brushed a few pink stands of hair away from her brow before pulling his hand back.

"Im here for...you.." Sakura called out again in her hushed tone, only this time, it didnt hold that tight, straining sound that he had been hearing for the past 6 hours.

Little did she know that Sasuke stayed up, watching over her all through the night before he too, drifted off to sleep.

* * *

**(A/N) **Hey! again, i wrote this story in a rush :) So let me know of any errors you find!

Ok, I know sakura sounds a little crazy right now, but I promise it will all make sense when im through with it!

Next chapter will becoming out as soon as i get through writting it, and thanks again!

(please keep in mind that i do have school next week, so it might take a few days to finish writing. Ill try hard not to keep you guys waiting!)

You guys are amazing!


	4. Blood and Pain

_**Chapter 4**_

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto**

**Please enjoy!**

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* * *

_

_The silent creak of a door echoed throughout the small room where Sakura and a small girl slept dreamlessly. The rain pounding against the roof sang out softly to the wind that was pushing the small front door back to slam the wall behind it before swinging foward once again in a rocking motion._

_Sakura let out a gasp of surprise escape her lips as she silently grasped a kunai at the unexpected sound, causing the small child that slept soundlessly under her arms to squirm. _

_Sakura waited until she felt the small weight beside her shift uncomfortably and settle with a silent intake of breath. Gingerly, Sakura propped her self up on her elbows, trying her best not to wake the unconscious girl beside her. She carefully removed her arms out from under her small body before turning her attention back to the swinging door._

_Her eyes felt heavy, her body trembling against the icy wind that blew against her skin, making a chill crawl its way up her spine._

_She was totally drained of chakra, having to heal so many injuries that were inflicted on both the girl that had slept under her protection, and the elderly couple that slept next door along with Naruto. Having had no sleep for the past three days, her body was unconditionally weak and was causing her hearing and thinking to dull from the much needed rest she was lacking. _

_She had no energy left inside of her, mentally and physically._

_As Sakura stood up, she could feel her legs cry out underneath her weight. Her arms felt like jello, her stomach empty and wide awake… It took just about every once of strength she had left just to make to the wide opened door. _

_Sakura squinted her eyes as she felt the floor shake as a loud clap of thunder began to die away into the night sky..._

_As she reached out with her hand, she felt a strong chakra presence closing in rapidly._

_The intruder left no time for her to react, as he quickly threw himself through the door, and spinning on his heels, roughly knocked Sakura's feet out from under her. Sakura had barely caught herself in time as her ninja reflexes acted on instinct, and shot out under her chest to catch her body just as she felt the cold wooden floor slam against her exposed arms and legs._

_The impact on one of her arms sent a large ripple of pain to shoot through her as a loud_ 'crack!'_ echoed throughout the room. It took all of her will power to keep the screaming inside her body, determined not to wake the sleeping girl or the elders._

_The intruder apparently didn't appreciate her hard effort for his foot shot out and threw Sakura against a wooden wall, breaking ribs in the process. The collision drove the remaining air clean out of Sakura's lungs. Stunned, she lay curled on her side, gasping and struggling to regain a semblance of control over her unresponsive limbs. _

"_Sakura-chan!!" _

_A flash of orange and black flashed across her blurred vision, as he threw himself in front of her and the intruder. _

_There was no doubt in anybody's mind that, whoever this guy was, he was indeed a very skilled shinobi. Behind him, 5 more shinobi's stood with kunai and shuriken held defensively in front of their bodies, all of their figures cloaked in a black robe. __On their forehead's sat the Sound headband._

_Sakura heard Naruto curse under his breath. We all hated sound more than anything else in the world. They were Orochimaru's minions, or servents as Kakashi-sensei liked to put it. And they took something precious away from them that could never be returned the same way as when it left._

_Naruto's foot shot out beneath him, catching the Sound ninja that had thrown Sakura aside underneath his chin, throwing him back several yards away._

_"Why the hell are Sound here!?" Naruto shouted at the Intruders. _

_One of the Sound ninja broke away from their ranks. "We're here for the medic." He said with a matter-of-fact tone, pointing at Sakura, who still lay curled on the wooden floor._

_"Well I'm _sure_ as hell not going to let you have her!" Naruto spat back. Then under his breath, Naruto murmured," Sakura-chan, you need to get out of here. Take the little girl and elders some place safe while I wrap things up."_

_The sound shinobi who had spoken began to laugh. Not a humorous laugh, but a laugh that said 'you had better back off if you know whats good for you.'_

_The concern in Naruto's voice fueled Sakura's efforts as nothing else had. As life returned to her arms and legs, she nodded her head in understanding before she reached out and grasped her katana that was strapped securely to her waist, and with precise aim, sent it soaring through the air to land in one of the shinobi's neck, severing his two main arteries in his neck. _

_Blood spilled out of his collapsing body, his fingers twitching and thrashing as he went into shock._

_The others looked on, horrified, as the shinobi let out an ear shattering cry before dropping to the floor in a pool of blood._

_When his chest finally ceased to move, Sakura flung herself out to the unconscious girl, pressing her feverish body against her chest as she laid her trembling form against the corner of a wall, protected by Naruto as well as herself. Seeing as Sound was blocking the only entrance, Sakura was left to create a new one. _

_Sakura lifted her fist into the air before bringing it down against a wall. A shower of splinters began to rain down on them as on side of the house was blown clean away._

_Adrenaline was rushing threw Sakura's veins now. She could feel Naruto's eyes looking her up and down, stopping on her limp arm that hung by her side, broken, and the blood that spilled out of her clenched jaw. _

_When she turned to stare at him, she saw his eyes drift to her right arm that was draped around her waist in an effort to keep the shattered ribs from puncturing her lungs and to suppress the rippling pain that kept shooting up inside of her. Blood was spilling out from the back of her head, giving her dark red highlights throughout her pink hair. Her body began to tremble violently as the cool wind once again slammed into her body. _

_"Sakura-chan...-" Naruto began._

_"Im fine Naruto." Sakura cut in. The last thing she wanted was to have Naruto distracted by her presence._

_She watched as Naruto's head nodded before he turned his attention back to the Sound Nin._

_Sakura quickly took up the little girl and in her arms before she painfully made her way through her make-shift exit. She tried to hurry, but her injuries (and the weight of the little girl) began to slow her down._

_Sakura looked down at the child huddled in her arms. Every step she took brought a streak of pain roaring through her._

_She didnt get far before a gasp of pain escaped her lips. Naruto turned his head at the unexpected sound to see Sakura fall to her knees, grasping her side as a trickle of blood spilled out from her wound. The girl rolled out from under her, now fully awake._

'Not good...!' _Naruto thought briefly before one of the Sound shinobi's lunged foward, his katana raised for a death blow to the head._

"_Move aside!"_

"_No." Naruto said looking the shinobi in the eye. "I don't think I will." He easily caught the shinobi's sword, and flung him over toward the flock of Ninja that crowded around him._

_The shinobi glared at Naruto before he lifted his finger and snapped. _

_At once, a blur of motion was all Sakura could see. The shinobi took out a kunai, and raced towards a wooden door the was braced along side the far south wall of the small home. _

_'No!...'_

_Sakura's instincts instantly took over her body and she found her feet fly out from beneath her, in an attempt to stop the charging Nin. _

_A second shinobi shot out from the pack that Naruto was battling viciously, along with his shadow clones, and kicked full force at Sakura._

"_Too Slow!!" The man yelled as he drove his katana through her side. A sickening scream burst through her lips as she dropped to her knees, gasping for air. _

_The man snickered at the weak pink-haired medic sunk to the floor. _

_He then disappeared behind the wooden door, appearing before her once again holding her patients in his hands._

_Sakura tried to reach out to realese the grip he had on the old couple, but instead felt a rocket of pain flow through her as the man brought his foot crashing down against her abdomen, not too happy about her little atempt to attack._

_He then brought his face close to Sakura's, so that she could feel his breath against her lips. He roughly gripped Sakura by the back of her head (which was already bleeding) so that she was facing both the elderly man and woman. Their horrified eyes locked with her blank ones as the shinobi brought his kunai to the mans throat, slicing it. _

_She could feel the warm blood splatter against her body as he released her head to haul the limp body and throw it aside._

_A painful cry broke out from the elderly woman's lips, as she thrashed wildly to break out of the shinobi's grip. Her wrinkled hands reached out to clutch at her husbands clothes, that were now soaked in his very own blood, only to be slapped away by her captor's hand._

_Once again, Sakura felt the man grip at her head, hoisting her up so that she could see every thing. _

_...the elderly man lying awkwardly on the ground, his gray eyes glazed and his hands still twitching….The woman desperately reached out toward her dying husband, tears streaming down her face as two other shinobi began to repeatedly kick her._

_Naruto fighting with scratches and cuts on his fists as he reached out towards the nearest shinobi and drove his fist into the mans gut, causing a loud crunch to echo throughout the battlefield, his red chakra blazing around his body. _

_The little girl being picked up by her hair, reopening wounds that she had worked so hard to close, and then stabbed and kicked by two Sound shinobi. She saw the girl scream as they broke her arm, satisfaction glowing in their soulless eyes at the retching sound, before tossing her aside like a piece of trash. _

_Naruto punched the ground with all his might, knocking everybody down to the ground, as he ran and cradled the girl against his chest. Protecting her with his own body. _

" _Stop it!" She whispered repeatedly. "Please just stop it!" _

…_Everything seemed to be happening in slow motion. She couldn't hear. Couldn't breathe. Couldn't do anything but watch with a helpless expression. It was too much for her._

_They took out their kunai's and then all went silent. _

_Sakura shut her eyes tight, wanting and wishing to wake up from the never ending night mare that engulfed her, as more blood spilled out in front of her. The elderly woman's cries stopped, as she fell...dead…beside the only person she really and truly loved._

_Tears began to well up inside her piercing green eyes. Why were they attacking? They had done nothing wrong! Nothing to hurt these men who took pleasure in hurting them. Nothing to cause them any trouble. They were just a peaceful little family, living on there own just as their parents and brothers and sisters had. If it was her they were after, then why didn't they just grab her already?! This torture was too much for her heart..._

_Then there was a streak of lightning, a clap of thunder. _

_A burning feeling was welling up inside her as the man dropped his kunai and shoved her against a wall, his hands pushing hard against her cracked ribs. _

_Already she could feel blood spilling from every part of her body as a cry escaped her lips. _

'Why cant I do anything!' _She called out desperately. __._

_Anger boiled through her veins and she kicked out with all her might, throwing and cursing in every direction. _

_She took hold of the mans katana and thrust it through the mans side. The shinobi dropped dead at her feat, her katana now tinted with the mans blood. One dead. Two dead. Then three and four. One by one, she swung out with all her might, revenge set in her heart. _

_Naruto looked up from his battle to see Sakura battleing a 1:3 fight. Five dead. Six dead. The numbers never stopped increasing, as more and more shinobi popped in through the bloodied house. Seven dead. Eight dead. Nine dead. _

_Soon there was only one left alive. He quickly shot out three shuriken, but Sakura blocked them with ease. She quickly rounded a corner and shoot out her foot, pinning the enemy down. Her gaze never left his eyes as she brought her katana down, ending the mans life._

"_Too slow." She said, anger burning in her voice._

_Clutching her side once again, Sakura sunk to the floor, her adrenaline all used up and her anger put out. _

_"Sakura! Sakura...are you ok?" Naruto asked as he kneeled down beside her._

_He was a little out of breath, but still looked to be in good health. _

_"The girl..." Sakura began, her voice shaking. "Is...Is she...okay?"_

_Naruto stood up, his eys searching for her until his eyes landed on a small figure hiding behind a door. The silently came out, drenched in red, her right arm clutching to her left. She slowly began to make her way over to the Leaf shinobi._

_"Im okay.." The girl said. Her voice sounded very loud and small in the eerie silence, until a burst of thunder erupted and the child launched herself towards Sakura, clutching to her tightly._

_Sakura let out a small gasp at the unexpected touch, but soon the girl realised what she was doing, and quickly released her, and instead held on to her leg, relieving the pain of her cracked ribs. Sakura smiled before she turned her head towards the front door... and she suddenly wished that she hadden't..._

_Standing in the rain was Orochimaru along with Kabuto..._

_"Aww. How touching, wouldnt you say so yourself Kabuto."_

_A smile flickered across his lips. _

_The girl suddenly let go of her leg, a warm liquid riding down her flesh.... _

_Sakura looked down to see her....and then..._

* * *

"NO!!!"

Sakura woke up with a cry.

Her breath was short and painful as her hands flew towards her broken ribs. _'Thats right...' _Sakura thought with a distant look in her eyes. _'i got in fight...and i got injured...and Orochimaru..' _She waited until she could feel her breathing slow. Her brain felt heavy, as if it hadn't been used in a while.

"Where...am I...?" her voice sounded very far away from her ears as she tried painfully to sit up. Her body felt as if it was baking in a hot oven and she wanted out of it _now_. But she didn't get far in her attempt before a strong hand pushed her back down in to the burning embrace that was wrapped around her.

That's when she remembered.

She was waiting for Naruto and Kakashi-sensei to catch up with her. A blonde man jumped out from behind the trees with a desire to kill. The amount of pain that shot up her leg when he grasped her. The weak feeling she felt in her body...a pain in her neck...

She remebered it all.

The feeling of a body pressing down against her own. A strong pair of hands wrapped around her bloodied body before they took off with her in their arms.

She had no idea who had saved her. Her body still felt weak and her brain was still slow from being unconscious for so long.

...She could feel the grasp of sleep pulling her down once again. She was awfully tired, and felt sick to her stomach, but her medic brain wasnt catching on fast enough. She could hear the sound of raindrops falling into the quiet background before a clap of thunder rang in her ears.

A slow, painful wave began to crawl through her as her ribs began to throb with the rapid beat of her heart

_'How long have i been out...?' _She asked herself with a soft, quiet voice.

_'I don't know..' _Came her inner voice. _'I'm guessing less than a day though...' _There was a short pause. _'Or, at least i hope so.'_

She felt something cold on her forehead, like a dampened cloth. Her throat felt dry, cracked and raw. Her eyes were blurry, heavy with the weight that was trying to keep them closed.

She fought herself to stay awake, not wanting to relive the horrible experience again.

She had found sleep hard to come by ever since that day. Every time she closed her eyes, flashes of the blood stained walls and the empty expressions on the elders faces flashed through her mind...it was horrible.

She had no idea where she was either.

A cool hand pressed against her forehead, and sent a shiver through her body from the touch.

She could hear a voice floating somewhere near her, but couldn't make out what they were saying. A few more voices popped in after a while. She couldn't even tell if it was male or female.

_'You know your in bad shape when you can't even determine gender...' _Sakura thought back. _'But how bad in shape am i really...'_

She decided not to dwell on her thoughts as her eyes began to slide close.

Although sleep did not come too easily to her tired mind, she wasn't feeling up to fighting it off anymore. More voices drifted over to her ears as the sound of more rain and thunder rang around her.

Seconds later, Sakura felt someone hold her up and place a cool liquid to her lips. Sakura had found herself flinching when the movement moved her broken ribs (At least she thought they were broken, but wasn't entirely sure seeing as she was sliding into another deep sleep...) She felt the cool liquid crawl to the back of her throat, soothing the burning sensation that had been plaguing her, and had found herself swallowing the cool liquid, relishing the moment. She tried not to think about who it was that was holding her as she felt the grip on her loosen and then the cool liquid ceased to flow into her burning lips. She felt her body press back down into the soft pallet under her. More voices.

And then, her breathing slowed, and she drifted into unconsciousness...

* * *

Sasuke sat near Sakura, eyeing her as her breathing slowed from choking gasps to painfull intakes of air. Her hands were shaking as, once again, they held on to the blanket that was wrapped around her. Sakura kept murmuring the same thing over and over again.

'_Blood..'_

And then she had suddenly jerked awake with a cry escaping her lips. "NO!!"

She grasped the side of her ribcage before her eyes suddenly fluttered open for the first time that day, exposing her bright green eyes. She began to mumble something that sounded like "Where am I" but he wasn't sure.

She suddenly tried to prop herself up, but he wasnt going to have it. He gently grasped her shoulder and pushed her back down into the soft blankets, without much of a fight.

_'The sooner she can sleep this off, the sooner we can leave.' S_asuke thought before any thing else found its way into his mind.

He stared out towards the night sky, the rain getting heavier and heavier. He could tell that the temperature was beginning to drop as a cool wind collided with the shelter of the tent.

He looked back down at the pink-haired medic, to find that her eyes were fighting to stay open.

She still couldn't see him though as her eyes were still glazed and strained.

_'What do you think's going to happen when she finds out it was _you_ who had kidnapped her?'_ Shouted out a thought from the back of his mind.

He shut his eyes at the thought. The truth was that... he really didn't know. He could tell that this wasn't the same cry-baby, always complain, weak pink-haired girl he had known in his Genin days.

She was different.

She was stronger now, and when he thought back to that battle between Sakura and Juugo, not once had she screamed in pain. She had stood her ground and had even landed some hard punches to Juugo that would have killed any normal villager...maybe even a low ranked shinobi...

_'But what was that green chakra that she was putting in her body...' _Sasuke thought with some curiosity. He had watched with his own eyes as she pressed down the green chakra to her injury and watched as the cut began to close. She was healing her injury...

_'So she's a medic Nin...' _He thought.

He couldn't help but be a little impressed. He didn't know that she had it in her. But then again...She always did have the best chakra control...

_'She could become useful on your quest to kill Itachi.' _Came Sasuke's inner voice.

Sasuke clenched his jaw shut. '_I don't want Sakura anywhere _near _Itachi!' _Sasuke thought back fiercely. _'Especially in her condition...'_ He added another glance toward Sakura.

_'Agreed.' _Sasuke's inner voice pipped up.

Sakura began to squirm again, her eyes fighting to stay open. Sweat began to form on her brow as her body shivered under the pile of blankets that covered her body. Sasuke put his hand up to her forehead before he pulled back cursing.

_'Damn it.' _Sasuke thought_._ '_Her fever is getting worse...'_

He took up the wet rag that had fallen of her when she had jerked awake and laid it back down on her forehead.

"Sakura. You need to sleep." He said with a hint of frustration in his voice. "Stop fighting it. You need the rest." This time, with a more gently tone.

It unsettled him to see her like this, and it also made him feel strange to have a sense of worry crawl down into the pit of his stomach. The sooner this thing passed, the better it would be for all of them.

A loud thunder clap was heard over his head as the rain clashed against the tent. Just then, the sound of a zipper was heard behind Sasuke, but he didnt need to turn around to see who it was.

Suigetsu stumbled in through the tent, his white hair matted to his face. It appeared that he too had heard the cry and had come out to check on Sakura, but found that she wasn't where he had last seen her before they all went to bed.

Of course, he figured Sasuke might have brought her in his tent (or atleast provided some sort of shelter ), seeing how she would be out in the cold...not to mention the rain.

But he was not expecting the sight he saw before him.

Sakura's face was drained of all of its color. Not even a little hint of her rosy cheeks existed on her face. Her green eyes held no life in them, as if her soul had gone someplace else and had left her body behind. Underneath her eyes were dark circles, which seemed to make her appear older than she actually was. The wet cloth on her forehead told him that her fever still hadn't broken yet. She had definitely lost some weight as his eyes drifted down to examine her thin body. He wondered if their was a bone that he _couldn't_ see under her translucent skin. Sweat beaded every exposed skin, and yet her body shivered as if she was just dumped in the Artic Ocean. It was a horrifying look....

"Whoa." Suigetsu said after a while.

He took a seat beside the fragile woman. Sasuke looked up from her tired face to stare full force at him. He didn't mind that Suigetsu wanted to check-up on Sakura, but he didn't like the way he was staring at her. He could tell the he was worried (based on his tone a few seconds ago) and also by his posture. He was definitely tensed, but he tried not to show it.

Sasuke silently nodded his head in agreement before he turned his attention back to the woman who was breathing heavily beside him.

"So, hows the fever?" Suigetsu asked with curiosity in his voice.

"Its gotten worse."

"And her mumblings?"

"Hasn't stopped." Sasuke paused for a second. "But she has been murmuring the word _blood _a lot." Sasuke felt a chill crawl up his spine, but quickly shook it off.

"I see." Suigetsu said.

There was a moment of silence that passed between them, both watching as the feverish woman closed her eyes once again, a shiver rippling through her body. They all sat and waited until her breathing evened and her clutches on the blankets loosened.

"Are you keeping her hydrated?" Suigetsu asked, breaking the silence.

"I cant get her to swallow anything."

"Hn."

Sasuke watched as Suigetsu took out a water bottle from under his black cloak, and silently stood up to kneel down beside Sakura's body.

Sasuke felt his body tense as he watched Suigetsu gently slide his arms under Sakura's shoulders, and hoist her up to lean against his arms. Sakura flinched away from his touch, but that only made him tighten his grip on her.

Sasuke ground his teeth together, trying to fight off the urge to run over to Sakura and pull Suigetsu away from her. But he knew that Sakura needed the water so, just this once, he restrained himself from putting a black eye to Suigetsu's face.

Suigetsu put the water bottle to her mouth and, very slowly and gently, tilted the water forward to touch her lips, and then her throat, and then watched as Sakura sub-consciously, and painfully, swallowed the liquid. He waited until all of the liquid held in the container had disappeared before he slid his arms back out from under her and settled her back into the soft pile of blankets.

When Sasuke saw Suigetsu's hands leave the pink-haired medic's body, he let out a breath that he hadn't even known he was holding. He didnt like the white haired man touching her, even if it was for her own good. A scowl began to form on his face.

"Here."

Sasuke looked up surprised to see a watter bottle thrown to him. He easily caught the jug of water before turning to Suigetsu for an explination.

"You'll be needing that." Suigetsu said with a small smill on his face.

Sasuke nodded his head in thanks, still angry about him touching Sakura.

Suigetsu looked back one last time at the slumbering woman before he walked into the dark night sky, the rain pouring and the thunder clapping behind his every step.

* * *

**(A/N)**So, it looks like Sasuke is starting to show his soft side, but Suigetsu better watch out! The next chapter will be coming out sometime next week! (Or at least i hope so...) Anyways, i hope yall enjoyed this chapter. I had a lot of fun writing it!

Hmm...I wonder what Naruto and Kakashi are up too.. :) But alas... you'll just have to wait and find out in the next chapter! Haha!

Please read and review! And thanks again!


	5. Dusk turns to dawn

**_Chapter 5_**

**_Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto_**

**_Please enjoy!_**

* * *

A loud clap of thunder was heard overhead, as two shinobi stood shivering in the darkening sky, their hair matted to their faces with sweat and small drops of falling water. The wind was sharp and cool on their exposed skin as they raced on through the trees, never slowing their neck breaking pace. The rain was pounding against their bodies, drenching them to the bone, and sending small shivers coursing through their veins.

_'We're not moving fast enough...!'_ thought Naruto, with a sharp burst of anger flowing through him. _'Sakura could be lying dead on the ground for all we know!'_

With that thought in mind, Naruto pushed himself even faster, not wanting the faint scent to drift away with the onslaught of rain water that was dropping like bombs from the endless black clouds overhead. More lightning broke out, and Naruto stood his ground as a low growl of thunder floated down from the dark clouds up above, shaking the sturdy tree's branches.

A small dog leaped higher into the frosty air, his ears lying flat against his head. He suddenly stopped as Sasuke's scent suddenly evaporated under his sharp Canine nose. The two shinobi stopped a few paces behind him, looking down with concern in their eyes.

In an attempt to pick up the scent again, Pakkun shut off any outside sounds and concentrated on one thing only. Finding a scent that would lead them to Sakura.

Kakashi looked down at the small dog, who had his nose to a near by trunk. As he walked up closer to the Nin dog, a few red blotches began to appear on the dampened bark.

"Can you recognize the scent?" Kakashi asked, eyeing Naruto before he looked back at the dog who was now walking in a zigzag line.

"No." The pug answered. "I have never smelled this scent before, but it seems to be trailing Sasuke's..." The dog kept walking before he stopped once again. This time, his head shot up. "There's more than one scent here. In total, I smell about three..."

"Do you smell Sakura's anywhere in there?" Naruto asked, his face hidden behind his spiked blonde hair. His voice was strained, coming out barely above a whisper. His fists were clutched into tight balls by his side.

_'Sasuke wouldn't hurt her would he? Has he really changed so much in the last couple of years that...-'_ Naruto paused, swallowing hard _'...that he would draw blood out of Sakura's veins without a seconds hesitation?'_

"I'm afraid not." The pug looked up, answering Naruto's question.

Naruto felt his heart drop. In an attempt to rid himself of all the frustration he'd been feeling, he rammed his fist into the wet bark beside him, creating a sound that would have put even the loudest crack of thunder to shame. Blood was falling from his clenched knuckles, and he quickly jumped out of the way of the falling tree, as did the others, and landed on the muddy ground below, where they took shelter under the tree's canopy.

The dog ignored Naruto interruption, and said, "Sasuke's scent ends here, as does the other ones."

"Then they must have done a teleportation jutsu to keep from anybody following their trail." Kakashi concluded. "Since they transported themselves, instead of traveling on foot, there's no way to be sure what direction they've gone, where their headed, or even how far they have traveled..."

"So then how are we supposed to get Sakura-chan back!" Naruto cried out in frustration.

A moment of silence passed before Kakashi looked up from his train of thought. "We'll have to go back to Konoha. It'll take more than the two of us to get Sakura back now, seeing as we can't track them, and also it looks as if Sasuke's not alone. There's three other people with him, from what Pakkun tells me, and we can't be sure if their mutations from Orochimaru's lab or just some Sound shinobi..."

Kakashi raised his hand up to stop Naruto from interrupting. "Naruto. I know how hard this is for you, but we're not going to accomplish anything by standing in the rain, arguing. We need the others."

Naruto began to open his mouth in protest, but quickly shut it when he saw Kakashi's face. His head was hanging low on his shoulders, his stiff form trembling. He could tell by his eyes that he was deeply worried for his student. He was suffering just as much as Naruto was. First Sasuke, and now Sakura...

He wasn't about to risk loosing Naruto as well on a wild goose-chase, that he knew would end badly for the both of them. Naruto looked away, clenching his eyes shut, before he turned his back to the forgotten trail, and headed back in the opposite direction of which they came.

_'I swear to you Sakura! I'll find you...I'll come back for you. Just wait for me.'_ Naruto looked back over his shoulder one last time. _'Sasuke... I'm trusting you to take care of her...!'_

The loud clap of thunder erupted from the clouds dark jaws as the two shinobi silently sped on, back to Konaha in search of a new and better team.

* * *

Sakura felt a sharp pain pulse through her body, following the racing beat of her heart. She tried to open her eyes, but felt the weight was too much for her at the moment. A soft groan escaped her chapped lips as a rush of nausea came over her body.

The last thing she remembered was a gentle hand on her forehead, cooling off the fire that was trapped around her burning body. The touch felt good, and she wanted to cry out when she felt it yank away from her skin, as if she'd burnt him.

_'I wouldn't doubt it.'_ Sakura thought with a weak voice coming out from the back of her mind. _'The way my skin feels right now, I wouldn't put it past my body to burn any touch that came in contact with me.'_

A soft, pain began to throb inside her head.... creating a small form of discomfort to fall into the pit of her stomach, but she quickly shook it away. She could feel a small sharp edge grazing her mind from the darkest corner of her memories, and she clenched her eyes shut tighter in an attempt to keep the sudden hurl of images from showing themselves once again in her unwilling mind. _'No...! I don't want to remember...!'_ Sakura thought.

Sakura bit back a sharp cry as the pain suddenly intensified, without any warning.

A sharp memory came roaring from the darkest corner of her mind, and she yanked her arms out from under the covers in an attempt to blind herself from the image, clutching her head as a sharp pain crawled its way through her aching body. In her mind stood the little girl, her eyes locked with her green ones, pure horror painted in both of their faces. "How could you..." Then the Kunia in her hand dropped as more blood splattered across her face...

_'No!!'_ Sakura screamed back at herself _'I couldn't...I didn't... It wasn't me...I could never...No! Please stop it!!'_

The image began to slowly fade away. Sakura let out a sharp sigh of relief as the pain in her head died down into the soft throb it once was. Her heart was beating like a hummingbirds in her chest, wild and frantic. The beat rang through her body, causing another roar of agony to burst from her leg, side, and neck. She tried to get up in order to shake away the pain and asses how badly her body was injured, but couldn't move her limbs.

It was then that she began to notice a pair of hands clinging to her arms tightly, as they were pinned securely by her side. She could hear a voice talking to her, but couldn't register it.

She tried to open her eyes once more, and barely succeeded as a small crack of light reached her strained pupils. The only thing she was able to see was two flaming red eyes staring at her trembling form, his head creased with what looked like worry. _'At least I think its a he...' _Sakura pinched her eyes shut, and then slowly opened them again, shaking the sleep that was clinging to her heavy eyelids. _'Wait...Is that the...No, it couldnt be...not him._

An image of Sasuke appeared in her visions...when they were Genins, and all of their past missions and adventures. Her heart was playing tricks on her. _'Forget about him..'_ Sakura told herself quietly. _'Just forget everything...'_

She turned her head slightly to the right to see a blurred image enter her range of vision. She could tell that, whoever it was, he was wearing a black cloak and he had white hair that was dripping with what looked like water. Behind him, a large sword as big, if not bigger, than his body strapped to his back.

The grip on her wrists vanished as she felt another pressure on the backside of her wrist. A low rumbled echoed throughout the small space she was lying in, adding to the piled confusion that was already stacked up in her tired and troubled mind.

_'What's going on?' _Sakura thought, with a little more life in her voice. Her vision slowly cleared, like a ripple in the water coming to a standstill. She turned her head back over to the left, to see the onyx eyes turned away from her to face the other figure. She listened as a random phrase of words reached her ears.

"...Cant be sure...a few hours now...doing the best I can...no..."

Sakura's heart stopped. _'That voice! Its the same one from that battle I had...'_

Then another voice reached her ears. "...have to help her....ya, I know...Sasuke...!"

Her eyes suddenly flung themselves open, her body protesting as she sat up in her makeshift bed, causing starbursts of pain to shoot up through her. _'Sasuke!_ _Did he just...say Sasuke?'_ A gasp escaped her lips as she clutched her head once again.

Another flash of memories. The rain. Blood. A cool hand. Her eyes. Their faces.

_'Get out of my head!_' Sakura screeched.

With the pain still burning in her ice cold body, Sakura managed to look around her to find two shocked gazes from two people standing beside her. She clenched her fists tightly together, not knowing what do, what to think, or what to expect. Her body trembled as her muscles tensed, ready to spring if they tried anything suspicious. Her body was still very weak and another pain made itself know in her neck. _'I may not be fully recovered, but I can still throw a few good punches..' _

Sakura was trying to form a plan on a way to get out of...where ever she was... when her eyes suddenly locked with the bright red ones she had seen just a few seconds ago. His gaze locked with hers as she tried to make a sound from her cracked throat. Her body limbs froze in place as she jerked her head down, her mind going haywire. _'No..It can't be him. Where am I... I...I cant take this right now! Where's Naruto?'_

Another round of questions swarmed in her mind, but she had decided to swallow them down. Another flash of memories. His eyes. His face. That night...

When she looked back up at him, he found that his hand was on her forehead. A small shiver ran up through her spine at the touch. She watched as a smirk formed its way on his face at her reaction.

"Looks like your fever has finally broke..." He said with a blank tone in his voice. She gazed at him in open shock. She definitely couldn't handle this right now. She looked down instead, trying to avoid his open stare as a burning anger roared inside her veins.

She found that he was draped in a black cloak, just like the other person on her other side, who remained silent as the conscious pink-haired medic took in everything that was happening around her. Another sharp pain ran through her as she shifted her body to a more comfortable position. Sasuke tensed as he watched Sakura's face twitch in pain, and he had to restrain himself from pushing her back down into the pallet. She still hasn't recovered and she was still sick...

Sakura looked back up at him, a little calmer than before, to see that his hair was framing his face like it always had. She could see that he was stronger than he used to be, as she traced the powerful muscles in his arms and chest, and his curse mark still sat on the base of his neck.

A burst of mix emotions burst through Sakura at that moment, and she clenched her jaw shut. Anger. Rejoice. Sadness. Hope. Annoyance. Fear. It was all there.

"Where am I." Sakura asked, not expecting an answer in return

"Well, looks like you've finally woken up Princess. Have a good nights sleep?"

Sakura turned to see the white haired man beside her sitting up and stretching, his smile filled with sharp, jagged teeth that reminded her of a shark.

She decided to ignore him, and turned back to Sasuke. He sat silently looking at her intently, not knowing what to expect.

"That's not important at the moment." He said, eyeing Sakura as her muscles bunched together under his stare.

"Than what the hell _is_ important?" Sakura asked with annoyance thick in her voice. She wanted to jump up and punch him in the face, but in her weak state, she didn't stand a chance. She tried to move her limbs, but found them unresponsive. Her head felt light headed, and her eyes stung with the effort to keep them from drifting close. She could tell that she was close to her breaking point.

"Whoa Princess, you sure are feisty for being knocked out for 2 days now."

Sasuke watched as her head shot up towards Suigetsu, her eyes flickering from shock to fear.

"Wha...What do you mea-"

"You were mumbling in your sleep." Sasuke interrupted, catching Sakura's attention with his intense stare. "You kept repeating the word 'blood' a lot lately..." Sasuke had decided to leave out the other small phrases she had murmured while she was unconscious. He could tell that she was still weak from her spell, and the wound on her side was beginning to bleed again. Her skin was still very pale, but her fever had broke and a small tint of color was starting to return to her sickly body. A small form of relief ran through his tense body.

Sakura looked down. "I dont know what your talking about. I'm sure you were just hearing things."

"Sakura...-"

A small cough broke out of Sakura's lips, stopping Sasuke in mid sentence, and she clutched her side once again. _'As far as I can tell, there's about three broken ribs, but I can't be sure until my strength returns...'_ Sakura reached out with her chakra, and in an attempt to stop the pain from flying through her body, she touched her ribs with her green chakra, and stitched up her flesh. She didn't have enough chakra, however, to heal the broken bones. Her body was still too weak, but it did come to a shock to her that her chakra reservations hasn't recuperated yet.

Sasuke waited patiently for her to finish healing her wound. He wanted an answer out of her, but didn't want to push her too hard at the moment. Her eyes were beginning to flutter close as the last of her chakra was used. _'That cold she's caught must be affecting her chakra as well as her body...'_

"Sasuke, Karin and Juugo have just arrived. They must have succeeded in their mission to get those leaf shinobi off our trail." Suigetsu called as he felt Karin's and Juugos chakra enter their small camp.

Sakura's heart dropped into her stomach, the rhythmic bet steadily getting faster. _'Two Leaf shinobi...He must be talking about Naruto and Kakashi sensei!'_ At that thought, Sakura threw he legs out from under the burning covers and stood up to spring after them, when an electric shock went up through her leg. She was stunned as she gripped her injury, forgetting all about her broken leg from Juugo's grip.

It had all happened so fast.

Sakura felt her legs buckle beneath her, before Sasuke's hand shot out and caught her in his strong embrace, holding her gently to his chest. She felt her muscles tense as he gently laid her back down into the pallet under the tent, pulling the covers over her.

"Sakura, you shouldnt be moving around yet." Sasuke said through clenched teeth. "You still haven't fully recovered. I can't have you hurting yourself more than you already are."

Sakura turned to glare at him, ignoring every word he had just said. All she wanted to know was if Naruto and Kakashi were safe. "Where's Naruto! What did yo-"

"I did nothing to him."

"And you expect me to believe that after your attempt to kill him last time we met!" A shudder racked through Sasuke.

"Hn." Sasuke remained calm as he saw Sakura tremble. If she was completely healed, Sasuke knew that she would have put up quite a fight.

No. This definitely wasn't the old Sakura he knew, for she would have never talked back to him in such a manner.

He could have said, "Sakura, why don't you jump off that cliff?," or, "Why don't you tear down the rain forest." and she would have said, "Sure thing Sasuke-kun!!"

But as he looked at her now, sick and injured and still arguing and putting up a fight with him, determination and furry blazing in every inch of her features... Yes. She was different.

Sakura was breathing hard now, pure rage taking over her body. She clutched her head again as a streak of pain soared through her head like a bullet. It felt as if a white hot wire was being forced into her brain cavity and twisted so that the burning sensation would intensify. Her jaw clenched, but she wasn't about to let the pain get the better of her.

Sasuke watched as the woman released her grip on her skull and, with small jerky motions, pulled her hands by her side.

She looked up to him with a strong even leveled tone and asked, "So there's more of you beside shark boy and yourself." It wasn't a question, but more of a statement.

Sasuke gazed at her intently, making sure that she was ok before replying with the same dark tone as hers.

"Hn. There's Karin, Juugo, and Suigetsu."

Sakura nodded once and then looked away from Sasuke's Sharingan. Drowsiness was getting the better of her now. She had a lot to think about with so many things swimming in her mind. She couldn't handle everything in such a little amount of time. She just wanted to sleep and hopefully wake-up out of her nightmare, to be back in Konaha, with Naruto and all of her other friends. _'They must be so worried...'_

"You should get more sleep. Were leaving just as soon as your able to travel." Sasuke said after he noticed how her eyelids kept drooping. She didn't acknowledge anything he said, but simply laid her head back down on his pillow and closed her eyes, knowing that she'll wake up in a few hours, and not two whole days. He decided to stay and wait until he saw her chest rising and falling with even motions as a deep sleep came over her, her breathing silent and soft as she dreamed.

He decided to leave her and see what his team was up to.

* * *

As Sasuke emerged from his tent, he could feel the light raindrops falling out of the grey sky. The weather hasn't let up, but it wasn't the hard pounding rain it once was. Instead it came down as a soft mist that stung his skin like ice as it touched him.

Karin was huddled by the campfire along with Juugo, a warm blanket wrapped around there shivering bodies, their eyes blank and expressionless

Suigetsu sat on a stone boulder with a smile splayed on his face as the rain morphed into his skin. Of course, he was made out of water, so he didn't mind the falling moisture as much as the others did.

Sasuke came and sat beside Juugo, his mind wandering back to Sakura every time he got lost in thought, which didn't last very long as Karin came to sit next to him.

"So Sasuke-kun, I was thinking that we could just dump that pink haired trash here. It obvious that she's able to take care of herself now that she's woken up from her pointless sleep." Karin said with daggers for eyes as she stared out towards Sasuke's tent, a deadly gleam in her eyes.

Sasuke tensed his muscles as she crept even closer. She stopped her advance on him as he sent her a heart-stopping glare.

"Come now Karin. We can't just leave her...not after what I did to her." Juugo said, eyes fixed on the hissing fire. "Besides, when she wakes up, she might be able to heal these injuries as well as her own."

"Ya Karin. Princess in there is in no condition to travel." Suigetsu piped up, an amused smirk on his face as Karin's face went red with anger. "Beside, I wouldn't mind having her with us. She could prove to be useful seeing how she's medic Nin."

Kariin stared at him, anger boiling in her chest.

She hated the thought of having the pink haired medic tagging along with her and her Sasuke-kun! She kept getting in the way of things as Sasuke spent all his time looking after her. _She_ was the one who deserved _his_ attention. Not that weakling in there.

Sasuke loked up from the fire to glare at Suigetsu. He clentched his fist together, his curse mark pulsing. A deep feeling of unease crept into Sasuke's thoughts, but he quickly pushed the feelng aside. He did't like it and he wanted it out.

"We've spent enough time looking after her!" Karin spat out through clentched teeth. "Besides, aren't we supposed to be looking for Itachi?"

"Yes." Sasuke said from his spot by the fire. "Which is exactly why we're keeping Sakura around. Itachi is after the Kyuubi inside of Naruto. He'll certainly come after her in an attempt to rescue Sakura. If we get Naruto, then Itachi will come."

Everybody stared at him dumbfounded. "If that's what you wanted to do, then why did you send us out there to get rid of the blonde brat!?" Karin asked with nothing but curiosity in her voice.

"To get you off my back." Sasuke said, with ice in his voice.

Karin stood their frozen to the ground, her mouth hung open in shock. "Wh...what?!"

Behind her, Suigetsu dropped off the boulder, laughing so hard that he had his hand clutched around his stomach while he banged his other fist on the boulder he was once sitting on, in an attempt to control himself. Juugo looked away with an amused grin on his face as he fought back the laughter that was threatening to break his composure.

Sasuke knew that their scents were already disguised as he, and everybody else, transported themselves to this clearing, and watched as the rain began to fall, knowing that soon, their scents would be drifted away with the cool rain water.

Soon, Dusk turned to dawn, and Sasuke retreated into his tent as more rain fell from the darkening sky.

* * *

**(A/N)** Hey, so this chapter was a little bit harder to write. I didn't know exactly what I wanted to happen, but was just playing it by ear. :)

Next chapter will becoming out soon I hope, but i haven't really started on it and im not sure how i want to start it off or whats going to happen...so we'll just have to wait and see! But don't worry, It'll be great!!

And I wanted to thank everybody who has reviewed my work! Your thoughts on this story is greatly appreciated!! You have really motivated me in so many ways :)

And as always, Thanks for reading!!


	6. Mixed emotions

**Chapter 6**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any other characters**

**Please Enjoy!**

* * *

A lone figure stood with his back resting against the trunk of a nearby tree, his fingers tapping against his arm in impatience, his outline blending into the darkness around him. At last, the leaves rustled and another figure appeared in the cover of night, the soft dribble pattering against his black and red cloak as the rain fell like tear drops from the sky. He stood with his shoulders squared to the other dark figure, who suddenly stood up, arms still crossed in front of his chest.

"The sighting has been confirmed." The one who had just arrived said, his eyes boring into the ground. He dared not look up into his comrades eyes. Especially at a time like this.

"Are you positive about this?" The other figure asked. His deep voice echoed throughout the shadows, sending shivers down the other figures spine.

"Yes, I'm fairly certain. She had pink hair and the Kyubi brat called her '_Sakura_.' I saw her with my own two eyes. I can assure you, she's the one."

The cloaked man nodded his head once, and then the figure disappeared in a gust of wind.

'_Well, this will be interesting…' _the man chuckled to himself. He then turned and disappeared in the trees, his figure blending into the surrounding darkness. '_...Sasuke_.'

* * *

Sakura blinked twice, her head spinning from what she'd heard. It was all so much for her to take in at once.

She turned in her make shift bed to stare out at the man who sat beside her, his head bowed low. She watched as his chest rose and fell with an even pace, as he slept soundlessly.

Her cold had finally settled down to just a cough and aching chest, but still, it was safe to say that it was gone. She sat upright in the pallet she was currently lying in and tuned her head back and forth, trying to ease the tired muscles that clamped onto her. A small smile began to pull at her the corner of her lips as she gazed at the raven haired boy beside her...

It was funny how her heart still races when Sasuke touches her. Although she doesn't blush, she can feel her heart skip a beat. '_It must be because I haven't seen him in three years…' _She thought to herself, trying to find an explanation for her actions. She had told her self that she harbored no feelings for the Uchiha boy she grew up with, that she'd finally moved on when he left her. But in the back of her mind, where all of her love was shoved into when he walked out on her, began to finally reveal themselves as time went by.

Sakura let a sigh escape her lips. '_No matter how hard I try to deny it, I still love Sasuke more than ever...' _

Sakura silently cursed herself. '_But I shouldn't be feeling this way...No. I don't feel this way...Its all wrong! I should be hating him for what he did to me. I should be holding a grudge against him. So why can't I!'_

Her emotions were always so confusing, part of her longed for him, but the other hated his guts and wanted nowhere near him. They were both battling fiercely with each other_, _trying to win her logic over, but neither had an advantage over the other. They were evenly matched.

One thing was clear to her though. She needed to get out of here.

With her chakra back to normal, she began to pull the covers off her body, flinching when Sasuke's body twitched in the smallest of motions, his breathing strayed from the slow, even pace it was once making. She let her gaze drift from the bunch of cloth, still wrapped in her hand, to Sasuke's still figure. Even though he appeared different and changed, the old Sasuke she once knew and loved still resided in his peaceful face.

A sharp ache pounded in her heart at the memory. She shook the thought away, and as silently as possible, slid the covers off the rest of her body, exposing her broken, torn up leg.

Sakura gasped at the sight. Black and purple bruises crawled all the way around the circumference of her leg, and made its way all the way to the lower portion of her thigh. A large cut was evident, but had scabbed over and left the remains in a brown layer over her pale flesh. The wound was indeed deeper than she had hoped for. Her bones were bent in three different angles. Sakura pinched her eyes shut, cursing herself for having let an injury like this untreated.

_'Damn it! The bones have set in all the wrong positions. They'll have to be broken again before I can set it right...' _

Sakura silently cried out to herself as she knew how much pain it would cause her. Deciding to just do it fast and get it over with, Sakura raised her hand up in the air, blue chakra protruding from her white knuckles, and cursed herself once more as she mentally fought with herself. She didn't want to break the bones, but it had to be done if she was ever going to walk again.

With that thought in mind, Sakura raised her fist even higher, sweat beading her brows in a cold sweat. The blue chakra flamed around every inch of her fist. Sakura clenched her eyes shut, and threw her fist down, but instead of hearing the crack of bones like she was hoping for, she felt nothing but still air.

Sakura flung her eyes open as the breath was suddenly knocked out of her. 'What_ the..!'_

On top of her stood Sasuke, his hand grasped around her blue inflamed fist, while his other hand pinned her free one above her head. His knees grazed the sides of her broken ribs, causing Sakura another great deal of unnecessary pain. His hips straddled her own, blocking her from her injury. His face was only inches above her own.

She dared not look in his eyes for fear that the Sharingan was activated. She could feel Sasuke's breath against her skin, and felt a shiver ripple through her body. When Sakura tried to squirm out of his strong hold, his grip only tightened on both her arms and he leaned in even closer. Another pain shot up through Sakura as the pain in her side intensified.

Sasuke, seeing her face twist in pain, let up on her side but still remained where he was, unconcerned over how close he was to Sakura's face. A strong urge to just lean down a couple more inches, to touch his lips with her own quickly came over him. Sasuke silently punched himself as hard as he could in the gut to keep the thought in his head, and out of temptations greedy grasp.

He looked back down at Sakura, who panted underneath him, causing her chest to brush against his own. Another urge. Another punch. Another small lecture.

"What the hell do you think your doing?!" Sasuke asked in a dangerous tone, a scowl planted on his face.

A mental image appeared in Sasuke's head as he heard Sakura breath out a sigh. He opened his eyes just in time to see her raise her fist into the air, blue chakra engulfing her knuckles, before she lurched her hand down. He saw what she was trying to do, he just didn't understand why. Before his mind could even acknowledge what was happening, he lunged forward and grasped her knuckles only inches from her leg, knocking her down before he pinned her underneath his own body.

Sasuke could still feel Sakura's body squirming underneath his own, but only pressed down further. Now their lips were merely inches apart. Sakura's breathing stopped and her struggling ceased to exist.

"Sasuke, get off me!" Sakura breathed with a voice little more than a whisper.

"No. Not until I know your not going to hurt yourself."

Sakura glared up at him before she brought her uninjured leg into the air, kneeing Sasuke in the side. She then threw her hips into the air, knocking Sasuke off her body before she sat up . He body flinched as her ribs shifted and sparked another swarm of unwanted pain.

In the little time she had, she quickly aimed her fist down, but once again, Sasuke had grasped it in his own fist before positioning himself over her body, this time pinning her legs down with his own legs, his knee on her chest. He tightened his grip on her wrists, using all his strength to keep her from ripping out of his hold, and punching him in the face. That would surly break some bones.

"Sakura! Stop struggling." Sasuke ordered.

"Not until you let me go!" Sakura snapped at him.

"Your being stubborn." Sasuke glared at the pink haired medic, his sharingan still activated. "Answer the question Sakura. What were you doing?"

Sakura twisted her wrists in an effort to make him release his grip on her, not wanting to give in like the old Sakura she used to be. Sasuke was beginning to use his own chakra now to keep her restrained, or face the risk of losing his hold on her. Sakura knew it was pointless. He had the advantage here, for every time she moved, a sharp pain would rack through her body. She cursed herself for not paying better attention to Sasuke. She should have seen this coming. '_Damn it all!'_

"Fine! If you just have to know, the bones in my leg are unaligned. Meaning, my bones aren't set in their proper positions. I have to break the bone again in order to heal the rest of the injury. But with you standing on top of me, its making it very difficult."

Sasuke ignored her last comment and said through clenched teeth, "You have to break your own leg?"

Sakura only nodded her head. She didn't want to do it either but it had to be done.

"Sasuke, if I'm ever to walk again on that leg, I have to break the bone and then heal it in its rightful positions."

Something inside of Sasuke screamed out at him. A scowl began to form on the corner of his lips as if he had just swallowed something distasteful.

Before Sakura realized what had happened, Sasuke released his grip on her hand that was previously pinned over her head, and reached down with his fist and quickly snapped the jagged bone in two, making it as quick as possible so the pain that followed afterwards wouldn't be half as painful. Still, the cry that escaped her lips was like having a thousand pins stabbed into his eyes. It was almost unbearable to see her in pain. A shudder passed through his body as the sound echoed throughout the small space. He clenched his fist as Sakura fell limp under his body.

When he stared back down at her, she saw that she had her eyes closed as she fought to control the overwhelming pain that was soaring in her body. Sasuke quickly hopped off of her as a small spasm ran through her now broken leg. He felt sick at what he just did, but having to watch Sakura bring the pain on her own accord had seemed wrong to him. He would have intervened then, and stopped her just as he did a few seconds ago. _'Besides, why should i care. She means nothing to me.'_

Sakura sat stunned for a while, unaware of what had just happened. But soon she quickly caught on and sat upright again, ignoring the stabbing pain her ribs sent her and focused all her concentration on connecting the bones before merging them together to form one solid bone. She then moved to the tendons that held the bones in place, and swiftly repaired them. Next the muscle and tissue.

Sasuke sat and watched in amazement as her deformed leg shaped itself to match her uninjured one, all the bruises and cuts disappearing under her soft touch. She then moved on to her cracked ribs.

She gently lifted her shirt up, but not enough to expose anything as Sasuke was still in the small space with her, his sharingan locked on her face.

A deep cut grazed the side of her abdomen. More bruises were blotted on her pale skin. Sasuke looked away from the sight. He couldn't stand seeing her like this. But why should he care? She's the same annoying pink-haired kuinochi she always used to be. Always getting in the way. It was frustrating to him that she could bring up such memories that were once planted in the deepest part of his mind.

Sakura placed her hand on her broken ribs, and with the warm flow of green chakra that was emitting from her fingertips, stitched up the gash and aligned the bones into their rightful places inside her body. She let out a sigh of relief when all the pain had disappeared from her body, with the exception of the one in her head.

Sakura stood up to test her leg out with a small portion of her body weight and smiled when she could stand on her legs once more. She then twisted her sides to make sure everything was ok, before she turned her deep jade green eyes on Sasuke's deep red ones. As usual, they were blank, holding no emotions. A frown was tugging on the corners of his lips as he looked over her body.

Another ache formed in Sakura's chest.

"You didn't have to do that."

"It doesn't matter." Sasuke looked up and eyed her intently. "So can you walk or not?"

"Ya, I should be able to."

Deciding to see if she was correct, Sakura pushed herself off the ground. She wobbled a little, her legs still shaky from being in bed for over two days.

Sasuke tensed, afraid that she was going to fall. Without a second's hesitation, he wrapped his arm around her waist to help support her. Sakura tensed at the touch, but soon found her own weight to be too much for her at the moment.

Sasuke felt her put her weight on his shoulder as her legs gave way. Sasuke pulled her closer to his chest, causing Sakura to shiver. He felt a smile tugging at his lips from her reaction. He then gently sat her down, allowing her to pull away from him a few feet.

"You shouldn't walk just yet." Sasuke said.

A strange alien feeling was pounding in his chest. He had always had a soft spot for Sakura, which made him curse in frustration. He had left Sakura and Naruto to come to Orochimaru, and had buried all his feelings away to leave nothing but an empty shell in its absence. He had felt nothing during his training with the snake sannin, and it angered him that Sakura was still able to bring those feelings up to the surface.

Sasuke turned his stoic face to stare at her, his sharingan deactivated. She stood up once again, quickly regaining her balance.

"I'm fine." Sakura said through clenched teeth. Deciding to change the subject, Sakura asked, "You said that Juugo was the one who attacked me?"

"Hn." Sasuke cursed himself for not intervening when he could have. If he had, he wouldn't be in this mess right now, and Sakura wouldn't have gotten hurt.

Sakura sighed inwardly, brushing off the dirt from her clothes. "Take me to him. I should probably heal his wounds before any become infected."

Sasuke got up, staring at her before he turned to the flap that led outside, the sky still grey. He activated his sharingan once more.

"Any attempt to escape and I'll know about it. You are to heal Juugo than go straight to the tent." He turned to stare at her, her eyes blazing with sick hatred. "Is that understood?"

Sakura lunged at him, her foot sliding from underneath her. Sasuke barely had time to dodge the attack before her fist swung at him. He caught it and twisted it behind her back, pinning her down.

"Sakura. For once in your life don't be foolish!"

"Speak for yourself Sasuke! Leaving the village was one of the most foolish decisions you could have made in your worthless life!" Sakura pushed all of her mixed emotions aside, anger roaring through her. She wasn't going to be ordered around like that.

Sasuke stiffened. A burning sensation roared through his body. _'Damn she's annoying.' _Even after suppressing all of those feelings, Sakura had hit a sore spot.

"You knew that Orochimaru wanted your body as a vessle, and you still went to him! All for power."

"He's dead now isn't he?" Sasuke said with a dangerous tone, trying to control his fury. "There's no point in arguing about the past."

Sakura silently cursed him.

"Sakura. If your not going follow directions, then Karin is going to have to restrain you with chakra infused rope. You're a prisoner now. Know your place."

"I'm no prisoner of yours." Sakura said in a low dangerous tone. What was she thinking? Her heart had no love for him.

Sasuke clenched the katana on his side in frustration. It would appear that the pink-hared medic under him would not listen to him. He didn't want to tie her up, but it would seem that he had no choice.

"Karin, get in here."

At the sound of his voice, Karin shot in through the door and almost stepped on top of Sakura, not knowing just how close they were to the tent's door.

"Sasuke-kun! I knew that you would want m..."

"Just tie her up with your chakra strings." Sasuke cut in darkly.

It was then that the flamed haired woman looked down and noticed the woman under him. She stared at her for a long moment, disgust written all through her features.

"Now Karin."

Sakura was still fighting under his hold on her. Quickly, Karin knelt down beside her, pulling out a long piece of rope. None too gently, Karin seised her wrists and wrapped the rope around her clenched fists. The scratchy thread rubbed against her skin and Karin knotted the ropes that bound her hands even tighter, cutting off her circulation. Karin wanted to make sure that Sakura knew just how much she despised her.

With an evil look in her eye, Karin gave the knot an extra twist, her eyes gleaming in satisfaction as the woman's jaw clenched shut, her eyes shut tight.

"There you go Sasuke-kun!" She said with the sweetest tone she could muster. "There's no way she'll be able to break out of that."

Sasuke turned back to face Karin. He nodded once and said, "You can go now." His eyes turned back on Sakura.

Karin stood up to walk out the door, but then turned back towards Sasuke. "What about Juugo's wounds. Shouldn't she go and heal them?"

Sakura bit down on her cheek. Another sharp pain in her head.

"Hn."

"Well then she should probably go and...-"

"Karin." Sasuke looked back up at the dark haired woman. "Leave us."

Karin stayed rooted to the spot, glaring at the pink-haired medic. "Ya, I'll see you later."

Sakura yanked at her bonds, refusing to become a prisoner. _'It's no use. I can't break free. But there's gotta be some thing I can do to get out of this! Think Sakura..think!'_

Sasuke moved to the other side of the tent, sitting down and watching as the medic struggled. He wasn't sure what he should do next. He could just set her free, but that would do them no good. But he didn't want to see her like this either...

"Sakura, you haven't changed one bit. Your still weak and pathetic as always."

Sakura stopped what she was doing right when she heard the word _weak._ It caused so much frustration and anger to roar through her body, it was enough for her to burn anything in contact, except for the stupid rope behind her. She hated the word _'weak'_...couldn't stand it.

"Weak. You still think I'm weak." Sakura ground her teeth together before she hauled herself up on her feet, her hands still tied behind her back.

"Weak. Useless. Annoying. A hindrance or dead weight. Pathetic. Helpless. A disgrace." She squared her shoulders, hands trembling, eyes still glued to the floor. "Poor little Sakura. Always falling behind all the other shinobi and always struggling through every obstacle she encountered. Slowing my team down, staying on the sidelines. Never having to risk her life." Sakura spat out the words in disgust.

Sasuke kept quiet, but his eyes remained on her.

"You still think that." It was more of a statement then it was a question. She jerked her head up, her eyes locking with Sasuke's. "You have no clue how wrong you are!"

Sakura lunged at him. Sasuke easily avoided her, but Sakura lurched to the side, avoiding Sasuke's attack to knock her down.

"I'm not the same girl you once knew!" Another kick and another dodge.

"Sakura, I'm not going to fight you." Sasuke calmly said. "For one, your tied up with chakra bonds. Two, your still haven't fully recovered from your ordeal. And three, I don't have the patience to deal with you right now." Sasuke pulled out a kunai, aiming it just so that it would catch on to her clothes and pin her down. Once he had a target, he threw it, but Sakura easily dodged it.

"You don't have a choice!" Sakura aimed a kick at Sasuke's face, but he grabbed her ankle. Sakura pulled her other foot out from under her, and kneed Sasuke in the gut before he had a chance to realise what was going on. He stumbled back a few feet, but then turned his attention back to Sakura.

He had never seen so much hate in her eyes before. She shot out at him once more, but stopped just a couple of inches from his face. Sasuke stood up with his sharingan activated. Sakura trembled at the sight. It brought so many memories to her...

She dropped to her knees, and jerked her head to the side.

"Your right. I don't have the patience to deal with you right now..." Her voice came out in a soft whisper "But I'm not the little girl you grew up with Sasuke... don't push me."

'_I'm done with hiding behind someone._ _And I will get back to Konoha one way or another.' _Sakura thought silently to herself.

Sasuke sighed and walked up to her. He knew that she was angry and hurting from her confinement, but he shouldn't care. He knealed down in front of her and propped her chin up, forcing her to stare at him and his eyes.

"We leave tomorrow, and your coming with us whether you like it or not." He then walked out, leaving Sakura alone. She wasn't sure if he was standing outside, or if he had gone to order the rest of his teamates to pack up.

Another ache pounded in her chest. _'Damn my emotions!' _Sakura thought fiercely. She tried once again to yank free of her bonds, but the rope glowed blue and held strong.

Then, out of nowhere, a loud growl rumbled from her stomach. Sakura looked down in shock at the unexpected sound.

_'Oh ya! I haven't eaten in days...'_ She had totally forgotten about eating_._Sakura wondered if she could somehow use that to her advantage... With a sigh, Sakura propped herself up onto her legs, hands pinned behind her back, and made her way to the entrance of the tent.

She wasn't sure if she was allowed outside. In her current state, anyone could stop her. She would have to earn their trust before she could make her attempt at escape. And it was then that she began to create a plan of escape.

* * *

**(A/N) **Alright, so I wasn't really happy with this chapter, but I'll try to add more fluff in the next one. :)

So...I wonder what Naruto and Kakashi are up to...

Next chapter will be coming out sometime next week! And thanks again for reading!


	7. Unexpected trouble

**Chapter 7**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto**

**Please Enjoy!**

* * *

'_No…It cant be true...!' _

A blonde headed woman sat in front of a large round desk, her thin fingers curling into a fist as she shook her head side to side, as if to deny the truth of what was being said to her. Once filled with the up-most joy at seeing Naruto and Kakashi now turned into a shocking depression. One that she had felt just once in her life at the death of her little brother. But this feeling was shaped differently from the previous feeling she had for her lost kin. It felt more intense and the feeling so strong and overwhelming, it felt as she was suffocating under the sheer pressure it had on her heart. The atmosphere immediately dropped, and the sun felt like cold ice on her back and bare arms, causing her to break out in goose bumps. She could almost taste the sickening ache in the thick, stagnant air.

"What do you mean she's _gone_?! How could this have happened!" She bellowed after a long, silent pause. The pang in her heart was almost too much for her bare. She had to clench her eyes shut to keep the fast-collecting tears from being seen by the other two shinobi before her. With a deep, shaky intake of breath, Tsunade tried her best to compose herself of all emotion so that she would be able to address the situation with a clear head. Feelings would only get in the way, and she could not afford to let anger and frustration cloud her judgement. So with a heavy sigh, Tsunade plopped back down in her chair and waited for an explanation, resting her head on her entwined hands.

Naruto looked up from the floor to stare at something far away from the present situation. He clenched his eyes, biting his cheek so that he wouldn't scream out about how much he hated the world, unable to come to terms with reality. "It's all my fault granny Tsunade. I shouldn't have let her go off on her own!" Naruto said with a low growl under his breath. _'Damn it!_ _'Why did he have to take Sakura? Why!?'_

"Lady Tsunade." Kakashi spoke up for the first time in what seemed like ages. "We'll get her back, I promise. All we need are your orders."

Tsunade looked away from Naruto, nodding her head in understanding before taking a few deep breaths. She then sat back down in her chair and rested her head on one of her hands, letting the other patter against her desk. "Are you positive that it was Sasuke Uchiha who took her."

"Yes. We have found several traces of his scent while searching for Sakura." He choked on the last part of the sentence.

"I see..." Tsunade bowed her head, lost in thought over the long and painful tale that was gradually beginning to unfold the truths. But one thing just didn't make since... Why would he take Sakura? Sasuke was already an S-ranked missing Nin, and seeing how he was the one who killed Orochimaru, she knew that he couldn't have taken her for Orochimaru's purpose. But then what!? Could it be to get Itachi...

Tsunade shook the thought away, deciding to focus on what was happening at the present time. "Naruto." Tsunade gestured toward the blonde haired ninja. At the mention of his name, Naruto jerked his head up and squared his shoulders to face his hokage.

"Ya granny Tsunade?"

"Go and gather up every available ninja you can find. We _are_going to get Sakura back." Tsunade growled under her breath and slammed her fist down on the wall behind her, creating a large hole.

Naruto blinked a couple of times, and then said, "Uh...Ya, sure thing!" With a quick dip of his head, Naruto sprinted out the office door before disappearing in a puff of smoke, heart still racing and the hidden tears coming down faster than ever.

Kakashi waited until Tsunade caught her breath and then asked, "What are your orders if we should encounter Sasuke?"

Tsunade arched an eyebrow, noticing how Kakashi's voice seemed blank and brittle. _'What could be going through his head...'_

Tsunade bent forward in her chair and propped her head up onto her hands, her eyes glazing over as she thought about what actions are to take place, ignoring her own selfish curiosity. She could always order him to capture him and bring him straight here, but what would they gain by that? Sasuke could still be useful in hunting down Itachi, Naruto's mortal enemy as well as the villages. Plus, she and the elders would have to hold a trail for him,...which would not turn out so good at the moment.

"I'll leave it up to you." She finally said.

"Lady Tsunade, I don't think tha-"

"I trust you to make the right decision, whatever it may be." Her voice sounded weak and strained. "You may go. I need some time to think." Tsunade quietly said to the silver-haired ninja with a flick of her hand, dismissing him from her office. Kakashi wanted to say something, but held his tongue. He knew not to argue with the hokage at the moment. He would come back tomorrow and discuss it with her when she could think straight again.

Kakashi nodded his head in respect, and then slowly strolled out of her office, leaving her to grieve if only for the night. He knew as well as anybody that Sakura had become like a daughter to the legendary Sannin, and that she was going to be missed terribly. The sooner they could get her back, the better.

* * *

Karin sat down with her back resting against a nearby tree trunk, her eyes locked on the Uchiha's tent that held the pink-haired medic. Anger was flowing through her veins, and the urge to just march in there and grab the girls throat with her own two hands were closing in around her sense of judgement.

She reached down and pulled out a kunai that was tucked in her ninja pouch around her leg, studying it as if it would just do the dirty work for her. How she longed to run into that tent, to feel the Kuniochi's blood running down her skin. She could almost feel her kunai digging into that woman's soft flesh, digging in deeper and deeper, until finally...it closed around her heart and ended her life. Then she would have Sasuke all to herself. Like it used to be. Like it was _supposed_ to be.

Karin huffed out a sigh, and then clenched her fist around the smooth handle and threw it so that it narrowly missed a peaceful nesting bird. She knew that Sasuke would kill her if he ever found a spot of _her _blood anywhere on her body. Just the way he looked at her was enough to make fire puff out of her nostrils and steam to flow out of her ears. His eyes looked so full of warmth, not like the natural blank, cold-hearted stare she would receive from him. He never so much as took 25 steps away from his tent, whether it was to make sure she didn't escape, or because he didn't want to leave her alone, she couldn't tell.

It was pathetic. Honestly, what so special about her? She had pink hair. Big Deal! She had excellent chakra control and she was trained under a legendary Sannin, but that didn't matter. As far as she could tell, the pink-haired Kunoichi was just as great as any other shinobi she had encountered...who had all died under her very hands, of course.

A slow smile touched her lips at the thought, but she held back. If she was going to get to Sasuke, she would have to do it without hurting Sakura. Or at least without him _knowing _that she had hurt Sakura.

_'Damn that girl! Sasuke-kun spends every ounce of his attention on her, he'd know if something had happened to her...'_

Karin cursed under her breath before pushing herself off the ground and slowly making her way back to the campsite.

Obviously, the girl was trying to escape, which is why Sasuke had ordered her to bound the medic with her chakra strings. She wondered if she should have really bound them so tight. If she had made them loose, the pink-haired medic would have had a chance of escape. But then again, seeing her in pain was almost as fun as watching Sasuke train with out his shirt on.

She smirked at the thought. _'Well one things for certain. That bitch will be out of my hair in no time. I will _personally_ see to it.'_

But there was the thought of how to do it. She could help her escape, but that was no fun. She actually hated the idea of helping the bitch with anything. What if she just made a few scars on her face before cutting her loose, that way she could watch the medic run with her tail between her legs. She turned the thought over in her mind, but knew that that would certainly cause a loud commotion.

This had to be done quietly. But a few cuts wouldn't be bad. And she would have to somehow get Sasuke away from her long enough so that to sneak in and, well, you get the idea.

"Hey Karin, why don't you do something useful for a change and gather up some fire wood?" Suigetsu called out, interrupting her thoughts. Karin jerked her head up at the unexpected sound to see Suigetsu hanging on a tree tree branch over her head.

Karin turned her nose up in the air and said, "I don't take orders from stupid fish, like yourself!"

Suigetsu shrugged his shoulders and plopped down next to her, a dangerous thought blooming in his mind.

"So." He started. "You weren't daydreaming about Sasuke again were you?"

"Get lost." Karin replied with an icy tone, hiding her eyes behind a veil of hair.

"You know that he's been spending a lot of time with princess in there. Sure you don't mind?"

Karin lunged at him, smirking when her fist made impact with Suigetsu's jaw. His form splashed into a pool of water at her feet, but Karin had already taken to the trees.

Suigetsu cursed under his breath as his watery form turned back into that of a human once again. He knew that he had crossed the line, but he didn't care. It was worth it.

* * *

Sakura twisted her wrists behind the small of her back, cursing in frustration as her hands went numb from the lack of blood cells in her small fingers. She had been trying in vain to get the chakra rope off her, as it was causing her a great deal of pain, but nothing would break them. With a sigh of defeat, Sakura carefully laid her head down on her knees, which were now cradled against her chest. She hated the feeling that was pounding in her heart.

It was like she was a wounded animal, lost in the woods and cornered by every predator to have ever walked the earth. She felt trapped. And the feeling was starting eating at her from every particle in her body.

With a deep sigh, Sakura pushed herself off the floor and walked to the opening of the tent. She stood there for several minutes, listening to the quiet pattering of rain on the tent. Suddenly,a flash of that awful day sprang into her head and she had to clench her teeth to keep from screaming. The image that appeared before her showed the image of the girl lying across the floor, her hair draped over her face, but still left her eyes exposed.

They could still be seen, full of tears and opened wide in shock. Next to her, a pink haired medic kept pushing green chakra into the moaning girl lying next to her. In the background, was Naruto, blood splattered across his chest and his head bowed low as he silently cursed under his breath. The pink haired medic looked like a mess, her hair was matted with red blotches in some places, spiked up in others, while her bangs cascaded around her pale face. Cuts were visible along her arms and legs while one lay limp by her side. Her clothes were torn in places and where the skin was visible lied either a deep purpled bruise or a bleeding gash.

And then the image disappeared, leaving Sakura gasping for air. She inhaled a deep satisfying breath and then exhaled in the same manner. It hadn't occurred to her that she was shaking until she gained a sense of where she was in the present time again.

_'I will never forgive myself for what I did...' _Sakura told herself in a horrified voice.

_'But it wasn't you. It was Orochimaru and Kabuto who killed her.' _Her inner self spat out the names in disgust.

_'She died by _my_ hands! Her blood was splattered across _my_Kunia. I ended her life!' _

_'Only because Orochimaru took control over your body!' _Sakura's inner self reasoned, but Sakura just shook her head.

'_Just Shut-up! I should have fought harder!' _Sakura dropped to her knees, letting the hot, salty-water drip down her face after trying to hide them for so long. _'I should have seen through his trap!'_

_'This isn't the first death you have had to deal with, why can't you let this one go?'_

_'Because.' _Sakura said in a small defeated voice. _'She was like me.'_

Her inner self finally shut up at that statement. The rain and wind began to billow on the tents protective cloth, and she pulled her knees in close to her chest. It seemed like the air around her was getting colder, and a small shiver crawled up her spine.

There was a sudden gust of wind as a drenched Uchiha made his way through the opening of the tent. He was shaking violently and his eyes were dark and blank. His hair was matted to his face, water dripping down his body as he rubbed his hand through his raven-colored hair. His clothes were clamped to his figure, his strong muscles rippling through the thin fabric.

Sakura found her eyes gazing along his powerful arms, and then his muscular chest, her heart pounding deep within her chest. His alabaster face jerked up to stare at the pink-haired medic. A deep red flush began to come over her pale face as he took off his shirt to wring the water out, and he smirked before turning away.

Sakura jerked her head away, digging her face into her knees as she felt the flash of heat rush up to her face. _'C'mon Sakura! Get a hold of yourself!'_

"Looks like another bad storm is coming our way." Sasuke said in a matter-of-fact tone, interrupting the girls thoughts. Sakura wanted to say something along the lines of, _'Oh really? I haven't noticed!' _but she held her tongue, not wanting to argue with the Uchiha. Sasuke turned his attention back to Sakura, grabbing a towel from a small pack laid next to the small pallet on the floor. "We'll stay here for the night." he finished.

Sakura just nodded her head in understanding. Sasuke eyed her warily, wondering if she would pull another stunt of escape, but then decided that it was highly unlikely. Even she wouldn't be that stupid to try and run off in a storm like this, especially when he was around.

After he felt that he was dry enough, he threw the towel down and directed his attention back to the medic, expecting to see her glaring at him. But instead, all he saw was a woman curled up in a corner, her hands bound behind her, and her face hidden under the cascade of salmon-pink hair, which blocked his view of her eyes. He studied her for a moment, taken aback by her lack of words. Usually she would have prattled on about how she hated it here or at least shout at him or something. But silence was the one thing he had not expected from the kunoichi. Silence was the sound that left the air thin and brittle, and it was the sound that he feared the most, for anything could happen.

He listened to Sakura's soft breathing for a while, as the rain continued to patter against the fabric. Tension was beginning to build up around him, as they both refused to break the unsettling silence. Growing frustrated, Sasuke took out a kunai and began to sharpen the weapon, paying little attention to the kunoichi.

Suddenly, a small intake of breath was heard from the medic as her hands began to pulse with pain from her tied wrists. The last of her blood from her hands were beginning to silently run down the sides of her fingers as the rope began to cut into her skin. Sakura could feel the thick, warm liquid roll down her knotted wrists, and grimaced.

Sasuke looked up from his weapon, eyes looking around for the cause of her discomfort before his eyes locked on to the small tickle of blood on the edges of her fingertips.

Sakura stiffened her muscles and bit her tongue as Sasuke made his way over to her. The pain of the rope scratching the inside of her soft flesh was slow and agonizing, like a hot wire being forced through skin and bone. Sasuke knealed before her, jerking his gaze from the bloody ropes to her face.

"Sakura, is the rope too tight?" Sasuke calmly asked as he studied her trembling form. _'Is she afraid of me?'_

"No, their fine." She lied in a stiff voice. She wanted to say yes, but she didn't want him to get the impression that she couldn't handle a little pain.

Sasuke rolled his eyes and said, "Just turn around and let me see."

Sakura felt herself flinch as Sasuke gently pulled her wrists out from behind her so that he could see just _how _tight Karin had tied the rope. The dripping blood from the tips of her curled fingers and the steady stream of the red liquid rolling down her wrists indicated that the rope was in fact cutting through her flesh. He quickly pulled out a kunai, and almost instantly felt Sakura stiffen. Ignoring her, Sasuke brought the sharpened weapon to the glowing rope and, being very careful not to cut her, sliced the rope in half.

Sakura let out a sigh of relief as she felt the sharp pain disappear from her hands. She lifted her pulsing wrists from behind her back to examine the deep cut, and then gently, with one hand at a time, healed the cuts and wiped away the dribbling blood from her skin.

Sasuke picked up the split rope and threw it aside, making a silent promise to have a little chat with Karin about how tight the ropes are _needed_ to be.

"You should have told me about the ropes." He said with an edgy tone to his voice. It unsettled him that Sakura hadn't said anything about the pain she was being forced to endure.

Sakura just huffed out a sigh in response and subconsciously began to rub her wrists. Sakura eyed the Uchiha, curious about the tone he used with her. "I didn't think that you cared about how comfortable i was here seeing how I'm a prisoner." She spat. And then in a softer tone, said, "But thanks."

Sasuke clenched his fists together. Her words were like ice, hard and cold to his ears. A weird feeling began to bubble up inside his chest, but he shook it away. Why should he care what she thought?

"Sasuke! Your bleeding!" Sakura shouted at him. Sasuke immediately let go of the bloodied kunia, gripping his hand as he silently cursed under his breath. He had totally forgotten about the weapon he was holding in his hand. With her medical instincts kicking in, Sakura stood up and rushed to Sasuke's side, gripping his hand in her own.

No sooner had he felt Sakura's cool touch on his skin had he felt the warm flush of warmth overcome him. It wasn't uncomfortable like he expected it to be from past experiences he had with Kabuto. It was comforting and strangely... pleasurable. And then the warmth of her chakra died away and the pain of his cut along with it. Sakura pulled his hand close to her face so that she could further examine the wound, making sure all the tissues had closed together properly. Satisfied with the result, she stood up and brushed herself off.

"What the _hell_ were you thinking! That could have easily have sliced off a few fingers."

Sasuke rolled his eyes at her ranting and shrugged his shoulders. He really didn't care at the moment. Sakura rolled her eyes too before she took a step back and sat down with her now-freed arms folding on top of her knees, hugging them to her chest. Sometimes Sasuke could be a real jerk.

Several minutes of silence passed, until a small yawn broke from the pink haired medic's lips. Sasuke flicked his gaze over to the Kuniochi before he said, "You should get some sleep."

Sakura froze, not sure what to say.

Finally, she found her voice again. "Wh...Where are you going to sleep?" She asked after a long pause, in which Sasuke strolled over to the tents opening. She didn't want to take up the whole pallet once again. A small smirk touched his lips as he turned back to stare at her, his black orbs taking in everything that was exposed to their piercing gaze.

"I don't plan on sleeping, Sakura." He said with annoyance etching out through his voice like fire-works. Although, inside he was slightly amused. Sakura continued to stare at him until she felt her limbs begin to grow heavy and her body begin to ache.

A few seconds passed and Sakura could feel yet another yawn making its way through her throat, but she quickly swallowed it down. Even though she hated to admit it, she _was _pretty tired. Already she could feel her eyes growing heavier and heavier by the second, pulling her down into a deep sleep. Shaking her head side to side, Sakura slowly made her way to the make-shift bed, placing her body on the very edge of the small pallet, so that _if _Sasuke wanted to sleep, he would have some room to do so.

As she laid her head down on the soft pillow, the overwhelming odor of pine, wood, and smoke reached her nose. It was such a strong smell, and so viciously masculine, Sakura felt her skin go hot and cold and crawl with a sense of warmth and protection. She dug her nose in further, vaguely aware of the charcoal eyes on her, before her eyes slowly fluttered close and sleep over came her once again.

* * *

"C'mon Itachi. We've been sitting here for hours! Why don't we just grab the girl and go?" A dark figure asked as he began to shiver under his red and black cloak. He couldn't believe the weather that they were having to stay out in. The rain he could deal with, but as for the frosty wind and the cool essence of night, well, he would rather live without. Growing impatient, the blue skinned man took out a small dagger and began to peel the bark away from the tree he was standing on, pretending that it was the soft flesh of a human instead of wood. His fingers were just itching to kill something. He cocked his head to the side to see his partner sitting on a tree limb, fingering with a shruikan.

"Be patient Kisame." Itachi calmly replied, lifting his gaze to meet Kisame's. "We will take her when the time is right."

Kisame arched an eyebrow in confusion, but decided to just let the matter drop. "Ya. Whatever you say Itachi."

Itachi looked out to see the four tents propped up against the trees. A slow smile touched his lips, and then with a soft, deadly voice said, "Besides, we should let Sasuke have his fun with the little cheery-blossom. It would be so tragic if we were to just snatch her away." He paused, letting his gaze fall to Sasuke's tent. And then with a little more life to his voice, said, "It's been a while since we had a good chase, wouldn't you say Kisame?

The blue gilled man began to chuckle, his eyes brighting up at the thought of his favorite game. 'Predetaor vs Prey.' "Ya. I believe your right." And with a silent nod, he took off in the trees, leaving nothing but silence in his absence.

Itachi closed his eyes as a smirk formed on his lips. _'So, little Sasuke, lets see just how much you really care about your cherry-blossom friend.'_

* * *

Sasuke sat and watched as Sakura's chest slowly rose and fell with each passing breath. Silently, so as not to wake her, he crept over to the opening of the tent and peered outside, having felt a prickle of unease fall into the pit of his stomach. A low roll of thunder rumbled through the night sky as rain and wind clashed together in a silent battle against the tents fabric. His eyes stung with the urge to stay awake as tried in vain to shake off the drowsiness that clung to him like tree sap stuck to a fly. It had been hours since Sakura had slipped into unconsciousness, and every minute that passed suddenly felt like an hour. Another flash of lightning streaked across the sky as Sasuke growled in frustration. Something just didn't feel right.

Over outside, he could hear Juugo's silent curse as he rushed for cover from the onslaught of rain and the sound of small birds flapping their wings as they hurried into their warm, cozy nests. He was beginning to wonder what had happened to Karin and Suigetsu, seeing how he hadn't heard a single complaint out of them since that morning, but didn't really worry too much about it. He knew that they were more than capable of taking care of themselves.

Slowly, Sasuke began to close his eyes, relaxing his tensed muscles and stiff limbs which were now beginning to ache. _'Maybe sleeping's not such a bad idea after all...' _He thought silently to himself.

Suddenly, a low moaning sound reached his ears.

Acting on reflex, Sasuke grabbed a kunai from the ninja pouch on his leg and held it defensively in front of his body. He soon realized that Sakura was the source of the small sound, and immediately pulled his kunai away, setting it down on the ground as he did so.

He kneeled down beside her, watching as her soft face twisted into that of pain and fear. _'Was she having a nightmare?' _Her lips began to part as a cold sweat formed along her creased forehead. Another soft moan escaped her pink lips as she turned over on her side, her hands clutching the pillow above her head.

Sasuke sat and watched as she began to mumble something low and inaudible, her breathing getting faster as she battled fiercely in her dreams. And then slowly, a small drop of crystal clear water began to cascade down the side of her pale face from the corner of her closed eyelids. _'Tears? Was she crying?' _Suddenly a single syllable slipped out of her rosy lips and found its way to his ears, just as her murmurs began to grow faster, now forming fully-comprehending words.

Her voice was soft, almost as silent as the gentle patter of rain that continued to fall from the sky. Then slowly, she began to murmur, "No...no,no,no...I'm so... sorry...please...no." She continued to murmur her silent apologies as her face began to twist into that of pain once again, until she felt a cool hand on her forehead. Sasuke growled under his breath in frustration, but then let it go as he saw how frail Sakura looked. A sharp pang made its way into his chest, but he couldn't have cared less at that one moment. What was really bothering him was what Sakura was murmuring.

After a few minutes, Sakura began to murmmer another slow string of words, and then he heard something that made his skin crawl and his fingers curl into a tight ball with anger.

Silently, Sakura said the two most hated names that he could think of besides Itachi,...

"Kabuto,...let me go...please no, no, Oro..chimaru...no." Sakura clenched her fist even tighter, as another twist of agony flickered through her sickening pale face.

Sasuke clenched his fist. _'What did they do to her...?' _

"Hush Sakura. Its all right now, I'm here, I'm right here." He softly said. He waited until her whimperings died down, and then gently removed his hand away from her pale face. _'I'm only doing this for her benefit only,_ _she needed to calm down.' _Sasuke thought, trying to explain why he did what he just did. Sasuke couldn't have feelings for her, not after the way he left her. Besides, it was clear that Sakura had moved on.

Sasuke felt a small part of him ache at the thought that she didn't have any more feelings for him, which made him even more frustrated. _'I don't have the right to feel hurt. If anybody should be feeling hurt, It would be Sakura and Naruto!' _

He watched as her side once again began to rise and fall evenly, and then silently wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her closer to his chest as he felt Sakura shiver. A comfortable warmth began to envelope him as he laid down in the soft pallet underneath him. The smell of cherries and sweet pine began to surround him as he breathed in Sakura's sweet scent. '_At least that part of her didn't change.' _He silently thought, a smirk forming on his soft alabaster face.

More tears began to silently slide down the pale edges of Sakura's cheeks, and Sasuke pulled her closer to him, causing Sakura to shiver once again. Then silently, and without warning, Sasuke drifted off to sleep, his arm draped over Sakura's body and his whispers left unheard in her ears.

* * *

Somewhere in the night, a cool wind blew in through the tents entrance, causing the gentle breeze to brush across Haruno Sakura's soft skin. At the winds cool touch, Sakura's eyes began to flutter open, prying off the sleep that still clung to her unusally warm body. She let a soft moan escape her lips as she snuggled deeper into the warm covers, wanting to fall back into her deep sleep. A warm wet feeling began to roll down her cheeks as she blinked her eyes a couple of times, trying to clear her vision. When she reached up with her hand, she was shocked to see that they were tears. Warm, salty tears. She snuggled closer under the covers, clenching her eyes shut as she brushed the troublesome thought of her reason for crying in her sleep.

A ruffle of covers echoed from behind her as she felt a warm, even breath blowing on the nape of her neck. Her body immediately tensed, flinching when the presence behind her suddenly shifted under the covers. Silently, Sakura tilted her head back so that she would be able to see the intruders face.

Her heart suddenly dropped into the pit of her stomach and her breath became stuck in her constricted throat as her eyes landed on the sleeping face of a Uchiha. To be more exact, Sasuke Uchiha. His raven-colored hair blended in perfectly with the dark of night, his alabaster face so calm and peaceful.

Suddenly, Sakura felt a small jerk on her waist, pulling her closer to Sasuke so that her head rested in the small crest of his warm collarbone. _'Sasuke has his arm wrapped around me? No...this must be a dream.' _Sakura thought back confused_._ She could practically hear her inner self jumping up and down with joy, but she shook the thought away. He probably didn't realize what he was doing, seeing how he was a sleep.

'_I _should_ probably wake him up, but...he looks so...peaceful.' _A smile touched Sakura's lips as Sasuke tightened his grip around her, his raven colored hair mixing in with her pink color. A warm bubbling feeling began to bloom inside of her at the knowledge that she was under his arms. Safe and protected under his care. In that one moment alone, Sakura felt safer than she had in months.

Not wanting to wake Sasuke up, Sakura decided to just close her eyes and drift off to sleep...but then a soft voice was heard in the darkness.

"Sakura?"

He must have heard her when she woke up.

Clenching her teeth, Sakura choice to remain silent in the hopes that Sasuke would think that she had fallen back to sleep, but he was not fooled. He knew that there was something she was hiding from him, whether it was a dark memory or something she was afraid to face, he couldn't tell. _'Something _must_ have happened to her....' _Sasuke thought to himself as he watched Sakura shiver again. Just the thought of someone hurting her, whether physically or mentally, made him burn with anger and a little frustration from the fact that she wouldn't tell him anything.

"Sakura, I know your awake." His voice came out in a soft whisper, but there was a slight concerned edge to his usually blank voice that made Sakura's skin crawl. "You said the names Kabuto and Orochimaru in your sleep. Now spill. I want to know what they did to you."

More silence. Sakura clenched her eyes shut, and tried to control her breathing so that it was moving at a slow, steady pace, hoping to prove to him that she wasn't awake. _'How does he know about Kabuto and Orochimaru?'_ Sakura's inner self asked.

Sakura could feel Sasuke's warm breath running down her back, and her mind became more confused as to why he didn't let her go. Now that he was awake, she would have thought that he would yank away from her. But instead, he pulled her tighter into his warm embrace and then in a low whisper said, "Sakura. Your being stubborn again. I'm not going to let you go until you tell me what happened to you. This has gone on long enough."

Sakura could feel her body stiffen. She was very warm, and she didn't want him to let her go. She felt safe under his embrace, and protected. But..._'Curse my heart. I should _want _him to let go of me! I should _want_ to get as far away from his as I can!'_She suddenly tried to push herself away from him, but couldn't so much as lift her neck a couple of inches. Again, she tried to pry her arms out from under her, but could only lift her wrist about a quarter-inch as much to her dismay and frustration.

A smirk touched the corners of Sasuke's mouth as his suspicions were confirmed. He knew that she would struggle once he brought up Kabuto and Orochimaru. It was perfectly clear that she didn't want to tell him anything, which only made him that much more concerned.

"Sasuke! Let. Me. Go." Sakura whispered in a low voice that was filled with venom, forgetting to be asleep as anger burned into her. Sasuke cocked his head to the side, not use to her using such a tone with him. But then again, she did change over that period of time.

"No Sakura. Tell me who it was that hurt you."

"I thought you were the one that said the past didn't matter!" She challenged. Then in a soft whisper said, "He's dead now anyways. There all dead." Sakura cringed against Sasuke's chest, grasping the pillow with her fist again.

Sasuke studied the pink haired medic, raising an eyebrow as to what she meant by, '_There all dead.'_ He stood there for a second, not sure what to do.

"What do you mea-"

Just then a crack of thunder shook the floor as a cloaked figure burst in through the tents door. Sakura suddenly stopped struggling, her muscles tensed and ready to spring. Sensing the danger, Sasuke jumped in front of the stunned medic with a kunai in hand, and then in a low voice hissed, "Whats wrong."

The man with the cloak over him took a step foward, his white hair folding over his eyes as the hilt of a sword protruded from the top of his shoulder.

"Sasuke! We've got a situation..."

* * *

**(A/N) **Haha! Sorry to leave you hangin there, but I had to stop somewhere! :) And I really hope that I didn't disappoint anybody in this chapter!!

So next chapter will be up in the next couple of days, or at least by the end of the week, hopefully :) And these chapters wont always be this long, but I'll try to make them close to this much :)

So was Sasuke and Sakura in character? I really hope so, but I couldn't tell if that was a little sudden or not

And as always, Thanks for Reading! PLEASE REVIEW!

(O, and thanks for the people who brought up my little spelling errors :) I think I fixed most of them now, and so far, I've got 818 words written for the next chapter! Whoo!)


	8. Weak

**Chapter 8**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto**

**Please enjoy!**

* * *

_The sound of rain falling atop twisted, green brambles._

_A clap of thunder, the swish of clothes._

_A heart beats rapidly, drowned out by the sickening smell of doom._

_A small chuckle broke out from the saturated darkness_

_Secreting fear into her very core_

_He was there. He had found her. _

_A small smirk broke out on his lips._

_"No..."_

_Then came the sound of no sound at all... silence_

* * *

Suigetsu stood motionless in the entrance of the tent, his breath coming in hard and labored gasps. The rain began to come down in small sheets, thundering against the tents protective fabric in a gentle song. Suigetsu silently strode in, gripping the hilt of his sword with his right hand while shaking his head side to side to rid himself of the rolling rain water that was sliding down the sides of his face and hair. His eyes were dark as they flicked from one person to the next, scanning the area around him.

"Well?" Prompt Sasuke, his voice hardening into that of impatience.

Suigetsu blinked a couple of times before squaring his shoulders, facing Sasuke's emotionless, black orbs. He took a deep breath and said, "It's Juugo. He's gone, and we think that his _killing urge_ might have resurfaced again."

Sasuke arched an eyebrow in confusion. "We?"

Just then, Karin stumbled in, her bright, flamed colored hair clamped tightly around the edges of her face. "Sasuke!" she panted, "We've got to move. Juugo's not _too_ far away from us, but his chakra presence is moving further and further away." Karin quickly glanced at the pink-hared medic on the floor of the tent, her green eyes glazed over, showing no hint of emotion. But she did notice the flash of hope spark into her emerald gaze before she quickly replaced it with a blank, dead look.

A slow smile began to touch the red-heads lips as she silently, and quickly, put her plan into action. _'If all goes well, I'll have that woman gone before Sasuke even realizes what it him!' _Karin had to clamp her mouth shut to suppress a giggle. Just having the idea of Sasuke falling into her little trap seemed almost _too _good to be true, but not _entirely_ impossible.

Sakura glanced at the woman before her, watching her suspiciously as her eyes glanced from her, to Sasuke, and back again. A cold trickle of dread began to fall into her heart.

"Karin, can you tell me Juugo's location?" Sasuke snapped, causing Karin to snap back out of her day-dream.

It took her a second to register the question. "H-Hai" She stumbled softly. Then, in a more definite tone said, "He's on the outskirts of a nearby village, approximately 2 miles up north that-a-way." She said, pointing her index finger in the direction of some high mountains glazed over in what appeared to be ice. Sasuke nodded his head when a small cough behind him broke through his concentration. Sasuke turned his head to stare at the pink-haired medic behind him, watching as her glittering green eyes flickered from one person to the next. When she finally met his gaze, her eyes softened a bit before hardening, but he didn't miss it. A small smirk formed its way on his lips as he looked away from her, deep in thought.

_'Well what are we supposed to about her? If we just leave her here, she'll get away for sure. Someone's going to have to stay behind and watch over her while we look for Juugo...' _Suigetsu seemed to be getting the same idea, for he said, "Don't worry Sasuke! I'll stay here with Princess. I promise you, I won't let her out of my sight for a _single second_." Suigetsu winked while making a move toward Sakura, his hand outstretched as if to grasp her by the shoulder. Sakura let out a disgusted gasp and jumped out from under the warm blankets, secretly grasping a kunai that was hidden in a pocket under her pink skirt with the black leggings rising just above her knees.

Sasuke's eyes hardened as he lunged to the side, blocking Suigetsu's path while grasping the watery forms wrist, gripping him tightly to the point that if he applied any more force, Suigetsu's hand would have snapped in two. Of course, that didn't really matter, seeing how he was practically made of water.

"You're not going to lay a _hand _on her." Sasuke growled low under his breath, making every word filled with a hint of venom. "Karin. You're to stay behind here."

Karin nodded once. "Understood." _'He doesn't suspect a thing...! This is working out better than I thought it would._

Sasuke glanced up Karin, hidden shock kept deep within his eyes. Usually, the red-headed woman would have been _begging _to go along with him, seeing how she would have been alone with him _and _away from Suigetsu. In any case, Karin was always going on about how much she loathed the pink-haired kunoichi. She couldn't even stand the sight of her...But now? _'Whats up with her?' _

Shrugging the thought off, Sasuke turned his attention back to Suigetsu, a new sense of anger burning in his chest. "Lets get going." He then walked out of the tents flap, roughly brushing Suigetsu aside, who in turn only smirked in response.

Karin bit down on her cheek in order to keep from smiling. This was _exactly _what she wanted to happen! So far, her plan was working out perfectly. "Ya, I'll watch the little pinkette. _No problem_." Karin quietly mumbled to herself, but Sasuke had caught her words and sent her a warning glare that said, _'what ever your thinking, you had better drop it.' _He then transferred his gaze over to Sakura, her sparkling green hues catching his black ones. She felt herself becoming lost in his hidden, dark orbs, as she tried to decipher any hidden emotions in the endless pits, but found nothing. She suddenly snapped back into the present when she noticed Sasuke smirking at her.

A slow, hint of worry crossed over into the pit of his stomach at the thought of leaving her alone here. Especially with Karin, knowing how much the women detest the pink-haired medic as if she were the most lethal poison. "I won't be long." he finally said, pushing the agitating thought away from his mind. He silently brushed his way into the crisp cool air before turning toward the direction Karin had pointed to, Suigetsu following close behind with a small grin on his face.

* * *

Karin stood watching the fleeting Uchiha for a while, waiting until his retreating back disappeared into the dark rain, and then slowly turned toward the pink haired medic that stood before her.

"Hello _Sakura_." Karin said with a twinkle lighting her dark, amber eyes. She was only vaguely aware of the death glare Sakura threw at her as she calculated how much time she would have before.... "Hmph." Karin numbly began to bite down on her inner cheek, eyes glistening over with a set goal. _'So... let the games begin...'_

A slow smile touched her lips as Karin slowly pulled out her katana, taking a small step toward the lithe girl before her. Sakura suddenly arched her body in a defensive manner, her eyes becoming wary as the red-head's smile widened even further. Sakura grasped the hilt of her own weapon, holding it close to her body. _'What's going on…?_

Karin continued to beam at her, placing one hand on her hip. "So do you want out or not?" She asked, taking another, larger, step toward the wary pinkette, her grip tightening on the hilt of the katana.

Sakura leaped back a few feet at the small advance, her mind watching the woman's in front of her with deep caution. There was no way she was going to trust a woman who belonged as a slave to Orochimaru! She blinked a couple of times, having been caught off guard at that unexpected question, but then shook her head side to side, glaring at the woman before her. Was she serious? Was this woman really going to let her escape and defy Sasuke's orders, just like that? No, there's got to be some sort of catch. _'But what...'_

Sakura began to eye the Katana held up by the red-headed woman's side, watching as it glinted in the dark shadows of night. She then flicked her gaze back towards Karin's eyes, silently watching and analyzing her every move with her piercing green hues.

"So you're just going to let me _go_…just like that?" Sakura asked, her voice full of skepticism before ending in a tone of sheer disbelief.

Karin's smile grew even wider as she began to study the edge of her blade, pretending to pay no attention to the questioning medic that stood before her. Sakura tensed her muscles as she waited for her reply. Karin took another step forward, swinging her katana in a small circular motion by her side. A small chuckle began to ring out from her pursed lips as she gazed out at the wary medic before her. Oh, how she was going to enjoy this!

Sakura furrowed her brows in confusion. It sounded like she was enjoying some sort of inside joke.

"Well..." Karin paused, stopping her giggling fit before it got_ too_ far out of hand. "Not without us having a little _fun_ first!" Karin ended her sentence with a sharp grunt as her left hand flung to the small pouch strapped to her side.

Sakura flung her body to the side as four senbon soared through the air, narrowly missing her soft flesh. With a quick, silent motion, Karin lifted her Katana and swung it over Sakura's retreating head, catching her narrowly by the cheek as she tried to dodge the unexpected attack. A small smile lifted at the corners of Karin's mouth as she heard Sakura hiss in pain, her hand clutching the deep gash on her face as green chakra began to glow in the wound. Karin swiftly pulled out a glowing senbon from her pouch, the sharp needle dripping in a blazing, purple liquid.

_'This should do the trick!' _The red-headed woman thought to herself, a slow smile forming on her lips as she thrust the glistening needle inside the exposed skin of the pinkett's shoulder. Sakura suddenly let out a sharp cry of pain, the sound echoing throughout the stilled darkness. Karin kicked the screaming girl aside, knocking her outside the tent and into the rain.

Sakura landed on her side with a sharp grunt, mud splattering across her red jacket and face as she skidded to a stand-still. "_You're... going to pay for that_!" Sakura breathed, gripping her side as green chakra molded into her wound.

Karin hurled herself outside, standing merely feet away from the pinkette who lied curled on her side. More thunder exploded in the dark sky as lightning reflected what appeared to be three slivers of metal protruding from her curled fist.

"I don't think so! Its time to end our little game, but thanks for playing!"

Sakura struggled to stand up as three more of the purple senbon came flying at her. Quickly, she pulled out her kunia, blocking two of the three deadly needles that soared past her. The clatter of metal against metal rang out into the moist air as rain fell like tiny bombs. Suddenly, the third needle slid past her defenses and pierced her soft flesh. Gritting her teeth, Sakura dropped to one knee, clutching her shoulder as the needle dug in deeper, sliding into her muscles and tendons. A flash of red hot pain burned in the small area where the needle protruded, the thick purple liquid seeping into the small open wound, as thick as tree sap.

"Why all the screaming Sakura?" Karin sneered as two more senbon soared out of her outstretched hand, one of them catching Sakura near her left cheek, cutting her. "Don't tell me that your seriously that _weak!" _The purple liquid seeped down into the open slit and, again, Sakura let out another ear-shattering screech of un-measurable agony, unable to keep the burning sensation from leaving her mouth. The sound lasted for what felt like an eternity.

Finally, Sakura clamped her mouth shut, stopping the cry from echoing in the shattered darkness, exhaling sharply through her tight lips. "No...you're wrong! I'm not weak!"

Karin began making her way towards the trembling pink-haired medic, a wide grin planted sweetly on her face. "Oh really_?_ So is that why_ you're_ the one on the ground, whimpering like a lost puppy_!?" _She sneered as she raised her fist high into the air, and struck Sakura in her gut, throwing her back against a tree. "How pathetic. I was really hoping to have more fun than _this_."

Sakura slid down the damp bark, pushing herself off the ground as her right hand clutched the sticky needle in her shoulder. Biting her lip, Sakura curled her fingers around the senbon, and with a quick cry, pulled the bloody needle out from within her; throwing it aside. She then clutched at her shoulder as blood began to spill out from the deep cut. She slowly began to push more green chakra into the wound, stopping the blood from cascading down her side.

"Wh...What did you do?" Sakura breathed, clenching her teeth together as more pain ricochet through her veins. "That liquid...on your weapons!?" She growled, her voice showing no trace of fear. Dropping to one knee, Sakura pulled out yet another purple senbon that protruded from her calf, releasing a low curse as the thick liquid slid down her translucent skin, coating her other, smaller cuts. Gripping the senbon tightly, Sakura yanked the needle out.

Karin smiled. "Do you like it? Its a special poison that attacks the nervous system while draining the hosts chakra so that their utterly helpless." Karin's face glowed as she pulled out four other senbon, the purple tint coated in a thin layer around the small needles. "Eventually, the poison will eat away all of your chakra, killing you if you get enough inside your body."

Sakura gripped her shoulder once again as a sharp pain pulsed through her punctured wound. "Why you...!"

Karin waved a finger back and forth as the struggling medic fought to pull herself up from the ground, a dangerous glint sparkling in her eyes. "I wouldn't do that if i were you. The more you move, the faster your heart will pump. The faster your blood circulates, the faster the poison will spread!"

Sakura glared at the red-headed woman, looking undaunted by her words as she slowly curled her fists into two tight knots by her side. She painfully hoisted her self up into a standing position, the rain pounding against her body.

"Well... I'm sorry to disappoint..." Sakura started through clenched teeth, a small tremble rolling down her spine as she took a small step forward, causing more blood to spill out through her calf. "But, Its going to take more than a little poison to take _me_ down!"

Karin glared at the pink-headed woman, her face contorted in frustration. "_How the hell can she still be walking_...!"

A small smile tugged at the corners of Sakura's lips. "You don't know who your dealing with here..."

Sakura lunged at Karin, pulling out her katana as she did so. Karin growled low under her breath, releasing another swarm of the tainted needles as she swiftly pushed herself away from the ground and into the dark, crisp air. Sakura let out a gasp as another senbon landed in her right arm and upper back. Sakura began to form a series of hand signs, ignoring the fiery pain that was shooting through her every being. "Shadow clone jutsu!"

Three perfect replicas of herself formed in a cloud of smoke next to her, all holding several kunais. Sakura smirked as Karin gawked at her.

"It's like...I said. You're going to have to do....more than that to...bring me down!" she huffed in between breaths, reaching out to pull the fiery needles out from her flesh. The clones suddenly charged at the distracted red head, taking advantage of her temporary laps of concentration.

It didn't take her long, however, to realise what was happening.

Squinting her eyes in frustration, Karin quickly slammed the three clones out of her way in one, bone-crushing punch, hurling them into the surrounding layer of trees before one by one, they each disappeared in a thick cloud of smoke.

Karin yanked her head back around to face the trembling girl, disbelief written all throughout her features. _'How much does it take to bring her down? No matter...the poison will soon take effect. I'll just have to be patient until then.' _Lifting her curled fist from the ground, Karin shouted "Lets see you dodge this!" She then closed her eyes in concentration, seeking out the medic's fading chakra. A sly smile touched her lips as she found her target hiding among some thick trees. She wrenched her eyes open, pulling out several kunai with paper bombs attached to the ends.

She smirked. _'This is just _way_ too easy...' _

"You can _run_, but you can't _hide_." Raising her fists high into the air, Karin sent the deadly weapons soaring through the air, landing gracefully on the damp ground with only a small thud. She smirked as a large '_boom_' sound shook the earth, dust flying out and blocking the view of the surrounding landscape. Two seconds later, an ear-shattering cry emitted from the small area where the lethal paper bombs landed, just as a streak of lightning revealed a bloodied body lying on the ground near a giant tree trunk. Smiling, Karin made her way over to the lifeless remains.

There before her stood a little pink-haired girl, her head turned down, hiding her ivory face, her body limp and unmoving. With a dark laugh, Karin flung her foot out and kicked the kunoichi in the side. The force sent the unresponsive body soaring into the drizzling, brittle air to smash into a tree, leaving a deep crack in the trunk. But as the limp body fell, it disappeared in yet another puff of smoke.

"_What the_!?" Karin twisted her head around as a piercing pain landed in the small of her back, narrowly missing her spinal chord. _'Substitution jutsu!? But when-?'_

Sakura pulled her katana out from the red-headed woman's flesh, her blood seeping onto the pile of rubble beneath her. "You would do well _not _to underestimate me."

Sakura watched as Karin hunched over, her hand gripping the fresh, bleeding wound.

"Give me the antidote!"

Karin pulled her head up to meet the stern, emerald eyes that were glaring at, a small chuckle ripping from her loose lips. Soon, it blossomed into a humorless laugh.

Sakura gripped at her shoulder as a sharp pain pulsed in her wound, a cold sweat breaking out along the top of her brows as she found that her limbs were growing numb. Karin smirked at Sakura. "There is no antidote for that poison. Once the liquid fell inside your body, your fate was already sealed."

Sakura gripped Karin around her throat, pinning her against the side of a tree. Karin hissed out in pain, but made no move to stop her.

"What do you _mean_ there's no antidote."

Karin's grin widened as she said, "I mean there's no _cure_."

Sakura dropped Karin down on the base of the tree, watching as her back slid down against the damp bark. Sakura felt another wave of pain wash up into her, and she stumbled back a few steps, gripping her shoulder even tighter. _'She's gotta be lying... There's always a cure. But what...?' _

Karin smirked at the pinkette before her, blood slowly spilling out of her jaw. She suddenly snapped her head up as two large chakra presences began to move at a rather fast pace toward her. _'What the hell-' _She had never felt such a strong source of chakra such as the one she was feeling now. Deciding not to stick around, Karin pushed herself off the ground and began to make a break for it, blood still spilling out from the small gash in her side. Whoever they were, she would leave them to take care of the pinkette. _'Besides, there's_ one more _thing I have to take care of...'_

Karin leaped into the tree's canopy, leaving the medic to fend for herself.

* * *

Sakura fell back against the sturdy trees, her legs buckling beneath her as the pain from the senbon in her arms and calf began to pulse with such an unbearable pain, death seemed almost too inviting. Her head began to swim as she thought of ways to extract the paralyzing poison from her body, knowing that Karin had given her a rather large dose considering how many needles were stuck inside her body, all of them dripping with the same distinctive purple liquid.

_'I could do a purge and empty out all the chemicals in my body, including the poison...' _Sakura thought weakly to herself, weighing the option in her head as she mentally replayed the procedure in her mind. Tsunade had taught the chakra-consuming technique a long time ago, just before she, Naruto, Sai, and Yamato left to retrieve Sasuke. Sakura felt a grim smile tug at her lips as her mind began to wonder what Sasuke would do when he found his whole camp destroyed, with her missing...considering that _he_ would even go and look for her.

Sakura's inner self suddenly snapped her out of the pointless thoughts as she was hurled back into the present situation. She was cold and wet, poisoned, very tired and a little confused. And to make matters worse, if she didn't do something fast, she would lose mobility of her limbs, and possibly die. So once again, Sakura began to contemplate about the purging procedure.

Sakura's inner self let out a sharp sigh of frustration as she began to think about the side-effects._ 'That requires too much energy! Energy that I can't afford to lose. Ugh!' _Sakura's inner self began to stomp her foot in agitation, as time was running out. '_There's got to be another way of riding my body of the poison.' _

Sakura pulled out a kunai, studying it with a sharp eye as her mind began to work over the condition she was in. '_If the poison is circulating through my blood, then maybe i could draw some of it out...' _

"Well, its worth a shot..." She breathed to herself. _'First things first though. I need to get rid of these poisoned senbons that are still inside me...'_

Sakura let out a soft grunt as she propped herself up against the base of a tree trunk, and with her teeth, began to pull out several of the purple needles stuck in the soft flesh of one of her arms. A sharp sting was released as each of the needles were plucked out, one by one, leaving a small trail of blood in its place.

When she finally didn't the strength to pull out any more, Sakura brought up the kunai from the small pouch wrapped around her thigh, and lightly touched it to her skin where one of the small trickles of blood fell silently. With a painful intake of breath, Sakura pierced her skin with the tip of her weapon, and pulled back slightly so that more of her blood fell freely down the side of her arm. She counted to ten in her head before she sealed the wound up with her chakra, wanting to make sure most of the poison was extracted from her body. She continued like that until her head began to feel rather dizzy (Probably from all the blood she'd lost) and dropped the crimson weapon beside her.

"There...that...should be...enough." she sighed to herself, feeling safe enough to close her eyes for a second, knowing that death would not follow her into the darkness of sleep. Hopefully.

A sharp cramp in her abdomen began to bubble up as she shifted her weight so that her head was resting against the trees damp bark, and she pulled her knees close to her chest, hugging them tightly against her. Her eyesight was beginning to blur, her head feelingly strangely dizzy and light weight.

Out from the shifting shadows rose a smooth, low voice, the sound almost lost in the wind and rain. It rose and fell like that of a dying wave, the sound never dampening. It was closely followed by a deep chuckle that was heard from a few meters across from her. A cold trickle of fear fell inside as the velvet voice reached her ears, and with what little strength she had left, propped her self up into a sitting position, grasping the red-stained kunai that sat by her side.

Sakura searched the rolling darkness for the sound of the voice, her emerald gaze penetrating any genjutsu's that she may have been caught in, as she scanned the surrounding area for any unknown chakra presence. It was a futile attempt, as she soon realized who it was that was calling out her name.

A dark, red and black cloaked figure morphed into her vision from the dark of night, his eyes dark crimson with the distinctive black commas rotating in a slow circle around his pupil. He looked up from under the dark hood, exposing a small smirk that resembled that of a certain Uchiha. The dark figure remained standing there, his eyes transfixed on her own. There was another low chuckle.

"_Hello Sakura_."

* * *

Sasuke stood motionless as a clap of thunder rumbled through the stilled darkness. Beside him sat Suigetsu, his eyes skimming through the small trees and patches of undergrowth, searching for any signs of Juugo. Sasuke furrowed his brows together in frustration. _'Karin did say 2 miles up north, near the outskirts of a nearby village, but...there's no trace of any villagers nearby, much less a little town. It's completely abandoned...'_

"Can you see him Sasuke?" Suigetsu pipped up from where he suddenly stood.

"No. There's no trace of him here. Lets back track a little bit and then-" His words were suddenly cut off as a loud piercing scream broke out through the clinging darkness. The sound must have lasted for at least 10 seconds, its pain emitting like fire crackers as it suddenly died down. Sasuke caught his breath in the middle of his throat as he recognised the sound from his past genin days._ 'Sakura!'_

Suigetsu jerked his head to the side as another cry echoed throughout the closed trees, this one softer than the previous cry. "Hey, that sounded like Princess over there!"

"Hn. I know." Sasuke suddenly stood up, pushing all of his chakra into the soles of his feet as he sent his whole body flying back towards the source of the cry. Adrenaline was pumping through his veins now, giving him an extra boost of energy as his body suddenly began to crackle with small bits of lightning. Behind him, Suigetsu was gasping for air, trying to keep up with Sasuke's break-neck pace, but finding it near impossible. Sasuke didn't seem to notice as he lurched to a sudden standstill, causing Suigetsu to bump into his back.

"Hey! Why the hell did you sto-" Suigetsu started, but suddenly clamped his mouth shut. Out above the tree tops, a giant cloud of dust rose with the wind, the thick rain and streak of lightning showing a deep whole in the thick canopy of trees. _'Whats the hell is going on over there?'_

Suigetsu turned to stare at Sasuke, waiting for him to give the signal for them to keep moving, but he was already gone. He stood on the tree branch motionless, his eyes locked on a another cloud of dust that erupted from the dark and rainy earth below. _'Not good...'_

* * *

Sasuke pushed himself faster and faster as yet another cry exploded from the night sky, this one shorter and softer from the other two, but still, it was a cry. _'Damn it!'_

Sasuke flung himself through the narrow gaps of two trees, landing atop a great branch that hung low over a large pile of ruble, crumbled below his feet. His eyes began to scan the outskirts of the area, searching for a flash of pink somewhere, anywhere. He didn't find it.

He quickly jumped down onto the slick brown earth, activating his sharingan while gripping the hilt of his katana (which was strapped securely to his waist) as he began to scan the desolate area with his dark, scarlet eyes, using the greatest amount of precaution as possible. Sasuke watched as the dark cloud of dust, a few hundred yards away from him, settled down into nothing but fine sand. He tried to keep himself hidden, stepping under the growing shadows of the tall trees.

The crackle of lightning over his body continued to flare up around him as more rain pelted him from behind, causing the large spikes in the back of his head to fall limp around his ivory face. His dark eyes began to scan another clearing a few yards away, when the faint sound of labored breathing reached his ears.

He snapped his head around in the direction of the muffled sound, to see a pink-haired woman curled on her side at the base of a tall tree, blood leaking from her calf, arm, and upper cheek. One hand was clamped tightly to the hilt of a bloodied kunai while her other arm was wrapped protectively around her middle. Her salmon colored hair was clamped tightly around her angular face from the droplets of water that gently fell from the sky, her piercing green hues glazing over as a small spasm rocketed through her petite, fragile body.

All around her, Sasuke could see small cuts not yet healed, as well as a few deep scratches. Her breathing sounded very hallow and her skin a glowing white even in the saturated darkness. Her eyes flickered open a fraction of an inch, her mind else where. It looked as if she was looking right through him, past his body and into the eyes of another. A slight grunt left her lips as she gripped the kunai tighter, her face suddenly twisting into that of pain.

"Sakura!" Sasuke sprinted over to her side, being careful not to move her in case any bones were broken. His mind was going hay-wire. Sakura was hurt, and it was all his fault. Why was it that he could never protect those he cared about? He couldn't protect his family, nor could he protect Naruto. But Sakura... It felt as if somebody was just _trying_ to get rid of everyone he grew up with and cared for_. _"Sakura, can you hear me?" He asked urgently as her eyes began to turn glassy and still.

No response.

Sasuke gently took hold of her shoulder, shaking her softly. "Sakura. You need to answer me. Don't close your eyes, stay awake."

Still no response. _'Damn it Sakura!'_

Sasuke put a hand up to her forehead as the ashen girl underneath him softly shuddered from the touch. He quickly examined her body with his eyes, and seeing no bones ripping through her flesh (or any odd angled shape protruding from her skin) decided that it was safe for him to carry her. Gently, he folded his hand below her knees and then wrapped his arm around her shoulders, picking her up off the muddied earth. "Keep your eyes open, Sakura!" he ordered quietly as the small woman in his arms flickered her pale green eyes up at him in confusion, as she felt herself being picked up off the ground.

Sasuke felt a burst of anger pour into his veins. How was it that Sakura got herself into the most dangerous, painful, and fatal situations? It was so _annoying _how he always had to come to her rescue. She couldn't even stay out of trouble for _5 minutes_. But then again, she had come to _his_ rescue not so long ago. She _and _Naruto in fact had come to rescue him from Orochimaru.

Sasuke gazed back down at the pink-haired kunoichi in his arms. He knew it wasn't her fault. He shouldn't be complaining about it in any case.

He shifted Sakura over so that her head was resting against his shoulder and her arms folded neatly in her lap. Sakura's eyes began to dim and flicker as he stood up, pulling her closer to him as he did so.

"Sas-uke...?"

Sasuke glanced down to see the pink-haired medic try and move her lips. Her eyes were pale, just like her face. Instead of the deep, sparkling emerald green he was so used to, they were empty and detached, holding no emotion.

Sasuke clenched his jaw, pulling her tighter into him as he sprung into the trees, a small form of relief breaking through his strong mental barriers as he gazed back down at the trembling girl. _'Good. She's awake.' _

"Hn. What is it?" he asked softly as he continued to carry her bridal style through the blurred trees. He needed to get her somewhere safe... and fast.

"You...have to leave...me behind!" Sakura breathed. "Just go..." Sasuke slowed his pace a little, watching Sakura keenly as her eyes began to close. Sasuke gently shook her, and her dreary eyes flickered open a fraction of an inch bigger. "Please...listen to me..." She let out a small hiss as Sasuke slowed to a stop, jumping down on the ground as his eyes began to scan the area.

"Suigetsu!" Sasuke called out into the darkness. Out of the shadows, a white headed man stepped out with a large sword slung over his shoulder. Immediately, his eyes connected with the body in Sasuke's arms. He rushed over to him and said, "What the hell happened over there?! And where's Karin at?"

Sasuke ignored him as Sakura began to squirm in his arms. "Sasuke...run...get away..."

Sasuke furrowed his eyebrows together in confusion. "What are you talking about? I'm not going anywhere."

"Aww. How touching." A dark voice from the shadows spoke.

Two dark figures stepped out of the trees shadows, their figures hidden behind a black cloak with red clouds floating around the rim. One of them was a blue- gilled man that held a giant sword wrapped in white cloth behind his back. Next to him stood another tall figure, his eyes a blazing red that had three swirling commas swimming in his dark pupils.

_"Itachi!" _Sasuke growled, his hold around Sakura tightening. _'Damn it! Why didn't I sense his chakra presence?'_

Suigetsu's face brightened up with a wide grin as he tookin the other man next to him, appearing unconcerned with the two men before them. "Well, if it isn't Kisame."

Kisame looked up to meet Suigetsu's piercing glare. He let out a small chuckle. "Suigetsu."

Itachi looked up at the raven haired man's crimson eyes, feeling rather bored. "Hello, little brother." His gaze then drifted down to the limp body in his arms. "I see you've found what we've been searching for." Itachi gestured toward the limp body in Sasuke's arms.

A smirk touched the corners of his lips as Sasuke's eyes hardened, wiping off any apparent emotion from his eyes that was previously there. "And what the hell do you want with _her_?" Sasuke growled, pressing Sakura closer to his chest. Her breathing was becoming even more shallow, as another twist of pain ebbed in through her side and calf, her blood staining Sasuke's white kimono and bare chest.

Sasuke stared down at her trembling form, watching as her eyes flickered open, meeting Itachi's intense crimson eyes. At the sight of his Sharingan, Sakura's eyes suddenly shot open before her entire body hung limp in his arms.

Sasuke gently shook Sakura, but nothing he did woke her up. His head then snapped up at Itachi. "What the hell did you do to her?!"

Itachi looked away from the pink-haired medic to face Sasuke, his curse mark starting to pulse. "All I did was put her into a temporary coma. That way her heart rate will slow down and the poison in her blood along with it."

"Poison?"

Itachi cocked an eyebrow and said, "Hai."

Sasuke furrowed his brows in suspicion, quickly glancing down at the feverish girl in his arms. "How do you know its poison..."

"It doesn't matter now. Sakura is slowly dying. If you want her to live, then I _suggest_ you hand her over to us."

"I will never hand her over to _you!" _Sasuke growled. Being as gentle as possible, he carefully laid Sakura down behind the shelter of a large tree, so that she would be some-what sheltered from the on-slaught of rain. _'I promise, I'll protect you Sakura. Just hang in there a little while longer...' _He then stood back up, his face hardening as he turned back to Itachi.

A small chuckle broke out of Itachi's lips. "I'm sorry Sasuke, but you don't have much of a choice."

"You're wrong. I do have a choice."

Itachi eyed his little brother carefully, watching how his fingers curled into a tight knot by his head. _"Itachi!"_

* * *

"I can't believe it's still raining out here!" Kiba griped as his dog, Akamaru, jumped from tree top to tree top, his silver pelt glistening. Beside him, Hinata sniffled and held back a sneeze.

"I-I know what you mean, Kiba." Hinita said warmly, smiling up at him from under her lashes.

"C'mon you guys! Focus, were here to get Sakura back, so keep your eyes peeled." Naruto shouted back, a hint of agitation in his loud voice. Kakashi and Sai ran at either side of him, eyes hard and blank as they surveyed the area for any traps that may be up ahead.

"Ah, calm down Naruto, we'll get her back." Kiba gently retorted. Hinata nodded her head a fraction of an inch before bringing her hands up to her chest and mumbling, "Byakugan!" The veins on her face suddenly etched its way to her skin as she wrenched her eyes open, looking for anything suspicious. Naruto grunted in approval before turning back to the point of their squad.

Just yesterday they were in the leaf village, and now they were out on a mission to bring Sakura home. A clap of thunder was heard over head and Naruto gazed up into the clouds. He could sense a large spike of chakra not far from where they were. Hinata abruptly came to a complete stand-still at the feel of the chakra presence, her arms trembling as she dropped to her knees. Next to her, Akamaru let out a painful yelp, shaking his head side to side a something painful had nipped at him.

"Hinata!" Naruto turned on his heels and leaped back to the tree branch where the dark haired heiress fell, just as the others seemed to notice the strong chakra presence close by. Sai looked up to see a dark cloud of dust rising beyond a low hill, followed by a soft hum. "Hinata, are you ok?!" Naruto bent down to see the young heiress breathing hard, her eyes opened wide with shock. _'Or was it fear?'_

The pale girl suddenly blinked out of her trance, looking a little bewildered. "Di-Did any of you guys feel th-that?"

Naruto stared down at the hyuga heiress as she began move, ready to catch her if she started to wobble. A small blush flushed her face as Naruto gently wrapped his arm around her waist to steady her.

"Hinata. What is it?" Shino asked from behind Kiba, watching as lightning broke out on the dark sky.

Hinata's smile faltered a bit, and Naruto felt a small prickle of panic as a pale tint swept over her face.

"I-" Hinata swallowed. "I thought that I saw...." Hinata broke off suddenly, gazing out from where the billow of dust was finally settling. She shook her head slightly, and then looked up to meet Naruto's questioning hues, his crystal eyes searching her own for answers.

"Never mind...lets just get going." She said gently, ignoring the suspicious glares she was receiving from the others.

Naruto slowly nodded, "Hai." He craned his neck to the side to stare out at the surrounding void of darkness, watching as the spike of chakra began to move at an incredible pace. Suddenly a loud scream cracked into the rainy air.

* * *

**(A/N) **Oh boy... looks like trouble...

I wonder what will happen to Naruto and the others once they catch up to Sasuke...or if they catch up to him at all? (I also threw in that small NaruHina moment for all of their fans :) ) I approve their love for each other :D

So as always, thank you to everyone who has stuck to my story, and thank you very much for your patience!! PLEASE REVIEW! and Thanks Again!

Next chapter should be up in the next week or so :) And I'll try to hurry! And, ya, I do have LOADS of homework and I'm also competing tomorrow in UIL!! I'm playin my solo by memory :) It'll be fun

Oh! and i thought this was funny, :) This chapter was actually bigger than my last one!! Crazy right?! Ya, over 7,450 words! WOW

And Ya. I tried to update this sooner, but the thing wouldn't let me log in!! T.T I was so sad. But here it is :] The next chapter to this story that I am writing.

Alright, I think thats all i have to say.


	9. Deception

**Chapter 9**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto**

**Please enjoy!**

* * *

Juugo stood motionless under the tall silhouette of the dark, swaying trees, his mind wandering else where. The rain was little more than a patter now, a cold, wet drizzle falling steadily from the frozen sky. Once again, there was no moon nor stars to gaze up at while he stood still, waiting and listening. The cruel embrace of night was something Juugo had never felt comfortable under, even with a close companion around. It was like he was utterly alone in the world, surrounded by the bitter crisp wind that whipped at him from all sides, and the never-ending darkness that seemed to stretch on and on for eternity, frozen in time.

Juugo silently shook his head while wringing water from the ends of his water-logged sleeves, flinging the clear droplets from his blonde mane into the frosted air. He was tired, confused, hungry, aggravated, cautious, and a little annoyed. Just moments ago, he was sleeping in his warm, cozy tent, protected from the bitter cold that constantly nipped at his now pinkened nose.

And now look at him.

Here _he_ was, sitting under the trees canopy, all wet and cold with absolutely nothing to sedate his stomach. How pitiful.

He shouldn't even_ be_ here right now... No. Not here. Not now.

Juugo tightened the black cloak around him, keeping his golden eyes on the blackened landscape of his surroundings. Out from the shadows, a slow hiss of thunder rang out, causing him to flinch. He grumbled a sigh in frustration, clenching his fists together while he cursed himself for having been afraid by a little thunder and rain.

_'Where the hell _is_ she?' _

As much as Juugo wanted to deny it, there was a feeling of fear and uneasiness that kept trickling inside the vary core of his gut, something he knew almost all too well.

Starting to feel a little wary, Juugo silently closed his eyes in concentration, focusing on one thing only. The silent sounds of the forest. Through his enhanced hearing, he could hear the rain and thunder fade into the silent background of his mind as he focused on the silent creatures sleeping in the forest. It helped to calm his uneasy mind, letting him relaxed a little as he thought back to just earlier that night.

**Flashback**

"_Juugo! Juugo, wake up!"_

_Juugo was dimly aware of the red headed woman pulling on his aching arms. He felt like death. It was a wonder how he could even open his eyes to the dark blanket of night, but with that voice ringing in his ears, he really didn't have much of a choice._

_Still, he turned over onto his stomach, wrapping his hands over his head as he tucked his nose under the soft, warm blankets, doing everything he knew possible to ignore the stubborn woman next to him. _

_A scowl began to form on Karin's lips, frustration boiling in her consciousness. If she had any hope of getting what she wanted, she was going to have to get the large blonde man _away_ from the campsite. Tonight._

_Somewhere in the back of her mind, a dim spike of chakra brushed her conscious._ _Her features suddenly froze, her amber eyes shut tight as she tried to make out the faint, alien presence. She could feel the strong impulses of energy from at least 7 different sources. But there was one in particular that caught her attention.... She could almost feel the strong agitation that was rolling off his distinct signature in massive waves, coated with what felt like anger and worry blossom in her own veins. As far away as they were, the tracker couldn't help but suppress a shudder from coursing through her rigid body._

_It was so _strong_. Almost as strong as Sasuke's chakra reading._ _The red headed woman tightened her grip on Juugo's shoulder as she began to read deeper into the signatures. At once, she felt the familiar presence of the leaf shinobi's chakra identity. _'So it appears that that village hidden in the Leaves want their little pinkette back...' _A sick smile twisted on her face. _This_ she could use to her advantage._

"_Karin?" Juugo arched an eyebrow at the red headed woman, snapping her pack into reality. "That really hurts." Karin looked down to face the large man beside her. It hadn't occurred to her just how tight she was holding on to Juugo's flesh. She quickly pulled her hands back, ushering a small apology for the pain she had unintentionally caused him. _

_Juugo sat up on his foam pallet, rubbing the back of his neck. Karin skidded outside his tent, beckoning for him to follow her. With a sigh, Juugo pushed himself outside into the frigid night air, ignoring the cool mist that struck his face like tiny needle pricks. He quickly found Karin's distinctive red mane, glistening from the droplets of water shifting through her hair in beads, and quickly caught up to her._

_"Karin? Whats wrong." Juugo asked as he turned to face the dark profile of the tracker ninja, startling her. Karin quickly held up a hand, silencing the large man as she pushed herself from the ground and into the trees after her. If she were to wake Sasuke up now, it would mean _very _bad news for her. Behind her, Karin could hear Juugo's silent footfalls as he cautiously jumped from tree branch to tree branch, not trusting the red headed woman before him._

_Feeling as if they were as far away as they would need to be away from Sasuke, Karin directed her attention toward the large blonde man, fighting a smile that threatened to reveal her true intentions. _

_Juugo was beginning to feel impatient. Looking up into the dark, night sky, he let out an angry sigh, waiting for Karin to explain herself. "This had better be good, Karin. Because I know i didn't come all the way out here for nothin. Right?" Karin lifted her head up to glare at the large man. Why was it that every one on her team thought that she was untrustworthy? She was helping to find Itachi wasn't she? And she was always warning them of the first sign's of danger. This only helped to better fuel her anger._

_"Ya, I do have a good reason for bringing you up here." Karin growled low under her breath, fighting back her pent up frustration. Juugo tilted his head to the side, signalling for her to continue. Karin began to walk towards the blonde man, saying "It turns out that we're being tracked. By L__eaf shinobi." _

_Juugo straightened up, his eyes darting across the landscape. "Karin, why didn't you tell Sasuke?" The redheaded woman ignored him, and instead bundled her fist in tight balls by her side. "That is _not _important right now! The fact is, Leaf shinobi are on there way _here_, and if they discover Sasuke, then they'll try and take him _back_. There's no telling what could happen." _

_Juugo listened silently, frustrated with his team mate. _'Of course she only thinks about Sasuke...' _Juugo thought, shaking his head side to side. "Karin. It they're leaf shinobi, don't you think the threat is that they'll take Sakura away?" Karin bit back a sharp retort, and settled instead for a piercing glare that would have put every other shinobi on there knees, trembling in fright. Juugo just stared blankly at her, feeling undeterred by her death glare._

_Juugo heaved out a heavy sigh and said, "I'm going to warn Sasuke. We can't let them know we have Sakura. Apparently, she's been made our team medic."_

_Karin stood frozen to the ground. "W-What!? You mean that bitch is our team mate now!?" Karin scuffed the ground with her foot, tilting her head up in disgust. "Last time I checked, she was our_ prisoner_. Besides, I can heal just as well as any other med Nin! We do NOT need her."_

_Juugo tried to fight back the smile that tugged at the corners of his jaw, finding Karin's jealousy amusing for some odd reason. Of course, he didn't like the fact that Karin had used such foul language on Sakura. Juugo settled _instead _for shrugging his shoulders, and then walked over to the edges of the clearing, preparing to spring when he felt a firm grip on his upper arm. Juugo looked down to find Karin glaring up at him from under her long lashes._

_"Hold on, Juugo." Karin said through clenched teeth. There was no way she was going to have Juugo barge into the campsite and ruin her plans, just like that. Closing her eyes, Karin sought out the distinct chakra signature of the Leaf shinobi, wanting to determine just how far away the small group was from their small hideout. Instantly, Karin felt the sharp aura of chakra brush her consciousness. The presence sent chills down her back as she felt their intense agitation etch away from their being, and start to flow through her. _

_Flickering her eyes open once again, Karin pinpointed their location, smiling to herself in satisfaction. Karin dropped her hand from Juugo's large shoulder, ignoring the dark aura that Juugo was emitting. _

_"It's too late to warn Sasuke. They're way too close for comfort at the moment." Karin raised up a hand to stop Juugo's protest, knowing that he would be arguing about Sakura's welfare. Heaving out a sigh in frustration, Karin said through clenched teeth, "Instead, I'll go and see what I can do about Sasuke while you go and intercept the small group. I'll meet up with you after they've been warned."_

_Juugo narrowed his eyes, not knowing whether or not to trust his so called "team-mate." Sensing Juugo's hesitation, Karin proceeded to play her trump card. "Juugo, you _do _want Sakura to get out safely don't you? After all, she _is _our team mate now."_

_Juugo continued to glare at the redheaded woman, feeling unsure of what to do. Should he trust her to get everyone out safely, or do as she suggests, and try and intercept the small group before they rendezvous. Karin suddenly interrupted his thoughts when she said, "Juugo, do you really think I would let those stupid Leaf shinobi take _my_Sasuke-kun away?"_

_Juugo grunted. "That's _not w_hat I'm worried about, Karin." _

_Karin suddenly threw her hands up in the air. "Look, Sasuke would never leave Sakura behind. If you're not going to trust me, then at least trust him." Juugo couldn't argue with that. Sasuke couldn't stand to be away from the pink haired medic for any more than 30 min, tops. He nodded his head once, confirming what Karin had just said to himself. "Hn. Where are they headed."_

_Karin pointed her finger back South, "Just go about 3 kilometers in that direction. Once I get to Sasuke, I'll come back to help you, just wait for me there." Juugo gave a silent nod as Karin pushed herself away from the muddy ground, sprinting back to the campsite, while he himself, pushed himself farther away from the Mountainous cliffs up north. _

**End of Flash Back**

Juugo tightly gripped his kunai, strapped securely to the side of his leg, his muscles tensing up as yet another clap of thunder roared over his head. He pushed himself further into the shadows, listening for the sound of footfalls that would give away the presence of another shinobi. He found it odd that, even after the many hours he stood waiting, he couldn't feel the presence of another chakra signature that Karin could so easily identify. There was nothing to give away even the remote possibility that team Hebi was being tracked...

A muffled moan suddenly broke through the darkness, interrupting Juugo's troubled thoughts. Acting quickly, Juugo threw out his right hand, flinging his sharpened weapon out toward the source of the sound. There was a moment of silence as the kunai cut threw the air, and then a flash of red caught his eyes as the lone figure abruptly lurched to the side to avoid his unexpected attack.

"What the HELL Juugo!?" Karin shouted out through clenched teeth, reaching out to grab the weapon that was thrown at her, before flinging it back towards Juugo's feet. It landed with a soft thud before the blond man, who simply shrugged before wrenching the weapon out from the ground, and tieing it back into its pouch.

"You shouldn't have just barged in like you did, Karin." Juugo turned to walk away, when a sudden, hoarse, moan escaped his companions lips. Juugo abruptly turned to see what was wrong, when all of a sudden, Karin collapsed onto the drenched, muddy earth, her face hidden behind her fiery mane. Juugo ran to see what had happened, skidding to halt before her crumbled body. A thick smell of blood wafted up toward his nose, causing a small shudder to ripple down his rigid form.

Bending down, Juugo gently rolled Karin onto her back, and felt his eyes open wide with shock as cuts lined the outside of her arms. His eyes began to trace down her torn body, when he felt his muscles stiffen at the deep gash in her side. The blood trickled down her injured form in a never-ending stream.

"K-Karin....What the hell happened to you?" Juugo silently whispered, not expecting a reply. Karin clenched her eyes shut, gripping her side with more force than necessary. She twisted her head around to catch Juugo's worried glance, his golden eyes meeting her red-amber ones.

"I was trying...to protect...them," a small cough broke from her lips, causing even more blood to spill out from her locked jaws. "...but she continued...continued to fight..." Karin opened her eyes a fraction of an inch, watching as Juugo's face became an unreadable mask. "It was her...i-it was..."

Juugo looked down at the red headed woman, watching as she continued to breathe with an unhealthy pace, her eyes clenching shut as she tried to suppress the sharp pain caused by her many wounds (Although they were all pretty mild except for the one in her side).

Karin clenched her fist together by her sides, tears beginning to swell inside her amber-red eyes. Juugo continued to watch, waiting for her to finish her sentence, but it never came. "Who Karin?"

"S-Sakura....It was...Saku-ra." Juggo abruptly pulled back, staring at Karin with unbelieving eyes. Karin continued to mumble the pink haired shinobi's name, despite his unseen reaction. "Karin, are you sure." he asked through tight lips.

With a slightly slurred mumble, Karin replied, "I would know h-her chakra signature an-anywhere..." She watched through half lidded eyes as the large blonde man took a step back, turning his face in the opposite direction as a sharp pang of worry came over his body. _'There's no way Sakura would do that...and where was Sasuke when all of this was happening? He could have easily stopped Sakura...' _Juugo furrowed his brows together in a crooked line _'Right?...'_

It was then that a slow smile tugged at the corners of the injured woman behind him, hidden only by her wet, clamped hair. If she wasn't going to be able to hurt her physically, then she was going to try and hurt her through words instead. Starting with Juugo...

Karin was about to roll over, in order to asses Juugo. Her body suddenly stiffened, just as Juugo turned his eyes on her. They were hard, all the gentleness that usually washed over his face gone. Inside, he was happy that Sakura gave Karin what she deserved. If she was looking for any sympathy from him, she wouldn't find it.

But that wasn't why he turned to stare at her. Inside, he felt the strong presence of another chakra signature. The agitation and anger fueling the dark red aura around the distinct signature in a circle of piercing flames. It was the Nine tailed fox's chakra they were feeling. This is what Sasuke was after... Why they had that pink haired medic...

"Hurry up and heal yourself, Karin. It's time to go."

* * *

Sakura felt her mind thrown back into the deep crevice of darkness, the light from her eyes fading away into the surrounding blackness. She felt herself start to plummet to the ground, her short pink locks branching out around her face as the wind whipped at her petite form. She opened her mouth to scream, as her limbs flared out for something to grasp. Anything to hold on to. There was nothing.

"AHHHHHHHH-umph!" Sakura felt her voice cut off as she suddenly began to slow, landing softly on a smooth black ground, her hair splayed across the floor. She immediately pulled her knees up into her chest, reaching blindly behind her for her weapons pouch, which was tied securely around her waist. Her soft green eyes scanned the area for any unknown chakra presence, while gripping the hilt of a kunai, thinking that she may have been caught in a Genjutsu.

She pulled her hands together, concentrating. "Release!" She opened her eyes, expecting to be back in the cold rain. But there was nothing. She was still in the eternal darkness that held no stopping point. She couldn't even see her hands in front of her face. At that point, she really wished she had Hinata's Byakugan with her...but there was no one in sight.

"W-Where am I..." she asked silently, not expecting an answer in return. At the sound of her soft voice, a pool of light flickered on, surrounding her body in the blinding light. Sakura's head shot up, her eyes glistening over. She branched her chakra out once more, searching for any sign of the presence at which she could attack, but again, she found none. '_How is this even possible? The user is not using any of their chakra, but then how....?'_A few seconds passed, before a second light flickered on, smaller than her own. In the light, a spiked, blonde headed man with baby blue eyes looked up from his standing position, eyes locked with her own green irises.

Sakura began to choke on her intake breath, feeling every part of her body tense and stiffen at the sight before her. "N-Naru-to..." she whispered softly. Before she could stop herself, Sakura flung herself toward the blonde headed shinobi, tears swelling up inside her soft, emerald green eyes. "Naruto!" she shouted out once more. The light behind her began to grow dimmer and smaller as she continued to run toward her team mate.

Naruto smiled warmly at her, when out from the darkness, deep red eyes flashed behind his blonde, spiked head. Sakura stopped her running, her body frozen by an unseen force. Fear. Fear like she had never felt before. Naruto continued to smile, not seeing the other man behind him, the flashing red eyes glinting with pleasure as he raised a silver katana high into the air. She watched as a smooth face of ivory skinny morphed into the blazing, crimson irises, his toned, muscular body taking shape under the shadows of the spotlight.

"S-Sasuke? What are you..!?" The Uchiha looked up, meeting Sakura's pained stare. He smiled, pulling his arm back above his head. "Now watch Sakura, as your precious friend falls dead right before _your_ eyes."

Sakura blinked, confused. _'W-What the...'_she felt herself stumble back a few steps, still gripping the kunai in her right hand. There was more than one voice who spoke just then... This...this isn't Sasuke...it couldn't be! That second voice.... _'Move Sakura, Move! You've got to do something!'_

The blonde headed shinobi began to wave at the petrified pink haired medic, before his gentle blue hues rested on her face. Sakura watched as Naruto's smile faltered, his head dropping low on his shoulders. Behind him, Sasuke's body emerged from the dark shadows, his crimson gaze resting on her pale face. Naruto's head suddenly shot up, lips parted as if he were about to say something.

Sasuke left no time for Naruto to react, as he quickly pulled down the hilt of his katana, driving the point of the sharpened weapon into the blond shinobi's shoulder, and through his heart. "NO!! _NARUTO!!_" Sakura sprinted toward the blonde headed shinobi, breaking free of the binding strain that gripped at her every limb. Blood splattered across her face, the warm, black liquid falling down her face in crimson tears.

"Naruto!!" Sakura raised her fist high into the air, aiming for Sasuke's perfect face. "Why you-!" Sakura let out a loud gasp as she was suddenly pinned down, the weight on her body knocking the breath out of her. "Get off of me!"

"Nobody's going to save you, my dear. You're all alone here." Sakura shook her head side to side. "Who are you?!" she breathed, a humorless laughter filling the eternal darkness. The smooth voice rang out once again, only this time, she could feel his hot breath against her ear. "How pathetic."

Sakura felt a surge of anger course through her veins, and she struggled against the invisible force that pinned her from all sides, straining to defend herself. Out of the darkness, three lights flickered on, shinning on three shinobi's figures. A small, broken voice spoke up from one of the dim lights, and she recognised the voice immediately.

"Sakura? Why didn't you save me?" It was Naruto who had asked. His deep blue eyes looked up from the black ground to stare at her leaking green ones. "You were there. You could have saved me." Just like that, he was gone.

Sakura gnawed at her lip, fighting the tears that continued to fall from her face. "No Naruto!! I tried... but I couldn't..."

"That's right." replied the smooth voice from before. Sakura gasped as she felt a sharp kick on her back, making her drop to her knees. "You couldn't save them. So weak..." The male voice grunted with disgust.

"Who. Are. You." Sakura asked again, through clenched teeth, gripping her kunai even more tightly than before. Only silence met her, before the second person spoke up from the dim light, illuminating the eternal darkness.

"Sakura. Just stay behind me! It's too dangerous for you."

Sakura felt a bile rise in her throat. There before her, was an image of her past. The area was clouded with a thick, grey mist, the railings of a bridge hidden in the deep coverage. She saw herself, standing all alone, trying to protect the bridge builder. All of a sudden, Sasori's body cut through the mist, exposing his long, precious sword, that looked exactly like Suigetsu's. The young Sakura in her vision screamed out with all her might, before Kakashi flashed in front of her, taking the bloody blow to his arm in order to protect Sakura and the bridge builder.

"K-Kakashi-sensei..." The light that shone on him was gone, dragging the painful memory along with it. Sakura dropped on all fours clenching her eyes shut as the warm salty-water of tears continued to silently fall from her pinched eyes, no matter how hard she tried to fight them off and keep them hidden.

There was another, sick chuckle behind her, before the unidentified man spoke again. "So weak! And you _dare_call yourself a ninja?" Sakura let out a small whimper of pain as a hardened foot slammed down against her side, causing her to fall flat into her chest. "Pathetic," he sneered.

"No." Sakura whispered. "You're wrong." There was another round of sharp laughter that echoed throughout her eternal darkness. "Oh no, my dear. I'm afraid not."

Sakura took a quick intake of breath, her whole body suddenly paralyzed. "Sakura, you have _always_ been the _weakest link _on your team, always holding them back and getting in their way." he sneered, sounding disgusted. "You have never been able to look out for yourself, making Naruto and Sasuke _always_ come to _your _rescue. When have you ever rescued them, huh, Sakura? When have you ever put your life on the line for the sake of others?" There was a sharp sound- footsteps, staccato against the hard floor.

"Your pathetic, always hiding behind your team mates' back while they fought for what they believed was right. You, on the other hand, who always screamed when you were afraid, running away from danger, or cowering behind a friend for protection. You, who just stood around and watched while one of you team mates was thrown to the filthy ground, taken for dead, and the best you could do was shout their name? You're an embarrassment to the _name _shinobi." There was a short pause, before the sound of fabric brushing against fabric resided close to where her face lay. She could feel the man's breath against her neck and face, causing her to shiver from the unexpected heat. "_You would be better off dead, Sakura."_

There was a sharp pain in Sakura's side as she looked down to see the point of a sword thrusted through her body, her very own blood dripping to the floor. Her eye sight became hazy as she looked out to the third light, exposing bright red eyes.

"S-Sasuke..." she found herself whispering.

The Uchiha smirked at the wounded pink haired medic. "Hn." His red eyes faded into that of black as he began to turn his head away from her. She watched silently as Sasuke was suddenly cloaked in black, a snake entwined around his shoulders and chest. Next to him, a lone figure with a long purple rope tied in a knot behind his back, beckoned for the younger Uchiha to follow. Suddenly, a pair of yellow, cat-like slits bore into her burning flesh, his snake like tongue flickering around his mouth. _'Orochimaru!' _

"Sasuke? Sasuke! No, don't-!"

A soft, silky smooth voice broke out from behind her, cutting her off. "He wont save you this time, Sakura. You're all alone here, a worthless piece of trash." Sakura bit her lower lip, clenching her emerald eyes shut; the feeling of loneliness and helplessness taking over her body. _'Why can't I do anything?' _she thought back desperately to herself. _'Why can't I fight? I know I'm stronger than this!' _A sudden burst of anger pushed away all of her previous feelings, leaving nothing but hatred and a burning anger in her hallow core.

"You're wrong. About _Everything_." she whispered

Sakura sat up on her knees, fighting the paralyzing force that continued to suffocate her body and lungs. "I don't give a damn about whether Sasuke will come to _my_ rescue." There was another flash of burning anger, heavy annoyance lacing around her every being. "Because-" she grounded out through her teeth, "I can beat the hell out of you anytime!"

* * *

Itachi felt his mind suddenly reel back as Sasuke flung his fist out, aiming for his face. Itachi smirked at his little brother's wasted efforts, catching the fist in his hand with ease. Sasuke's eyes flashed red, the lightning bouncing off the tiny droplets of falling water, exposing the blind spot he had been searching for in Itachi's defenses. He pushed himself into the air, his fist still gripped tightly in Itachi's grasp, and twisted his body to the side, catching the distracted Itachi narrowly in his side with the edge of his foot, his strong chakra adding to the force of the harsh impact.

Itachi released Sasuke's fist, gritting his teeth together from the shock of the blow. _'Looks like I'll have to watch him with better care. His speed...he's almost as fast as I am...' _A small smirk began to form on Itachi's lips. _'Well then...things are starting to get interesting around here.'_

Sasuke landed just feet away from where Itachi skidded to a standstill, his crimson eyes clenched shut. Again, Itachi could feel the faint build up of pressure inside his mind as the unconscious medic fought inside her mind. _'This girl is stronger than she looks__...' _The sharp crack of thunder roared over his head, making his appearance that much more intimidating. His eyes were locked onto the unconscious, pink haired medic, who lied curled at the base of a tree, her hands curled into fists by her side.

He could faintly hear her labored breathing, and wondered if it was the poison that was the cause of her stressed breathing, or the nightmare he planted in her head. In the background, he could hear the sound of clashing metal from Kisame and Suigetsu.

Sasuke stood still, watching as Itachi took a step away from the small battle field. A small smirk tugged at the corners of Itachi's lips as his clenched eyes slowly opened, exposing the three rotating comas. His eyes were still trained on the medic, a deep chuckle rising from his throat. '_Well then, looks like I've underestimated her. But we can easily fix that.' _

Behind him, Itachi heard a small twig snap, turning just in time to dodge the fire balls that continued to fly at him. He jumped up, smirking. "Come Sasuke. Surly you can do better than that!" Itachi clasped his hands together, forming a series of hand seals. "Water Release: Water Fang Jutsu!"

Sasuke leaped back, a circle of crushing water spikes circling around his still form. "Damn it!" he cursed, dodging the piercing spikes as they soared at him from all angles. He flinched back as a spike grazed the muscle in his left shoulder, blood slowly trickling down his arm. He suddenly jumped onto the nearest branch, his breath coming in short rapid gasps, his eyes locked onto Itachi's stiff form.

Sasuke silently cursed in his head. _'Why won't he fight me? Am I really _that_ weak...have I not grown stronger?' _Sasuke clenched his fists in a tight ball just at the thought. What had he been doing in the past two and a half years? _'becoming more powerful!' _came the sharp reply in his head. _'Time to get serious.'_

He could feel it now; the power coursing through his veins. His hatred, now brought to a boil under the icy wind, pounding in his ears. His burning desire for revenge, rocketing through his hallow self. He will make Itachi regret what he had done to his clan and his family. He will finally right the Uchiha's family name, clearing it of all the dishonor he had put on his clans symbol. Today is the day _he dies_!

* * *

Hinita stood frozen, pinned to the branch she stood on, unmoving. Beside her, Naruto held his breath, fists clenched tightly by his side. Everyone stood stone still, like a deer caught in headlights.

They had heard it too. The scream. The scream that had sounded only all too familiar to the expressionless Naruto. _'It can't be...'_

_"SAKURA!" _Naruto began to shout, but Kakashi was quicker. He quickly arrested Naruto's voice with a hand clamped securely over the angry shinobi, his leaf headband pulled up, exposing his sharingan. "Let me go Kakashi! Sakura's in danger-"

"Don't you think I already know that?" Kakashi cut in sharply through Naruto's muffled protest. "Now Shut-up. We're not alone here."

Just then, Naruto felt the alien presence of another chakra signature, moving swiftly through the surrounding area. It was fast, the tension rolling off in waves. Behind him, Akimaru whimpered softly, its body quivering in agitation. Kiba glanced at the large dog, his eyes growing darker as he picked up what Akimaru was feeling.

"There's something funny about that chakra." Kiba murmured, lifting his eyes to Kakashi's. "It's not normal..." he trailed off at the last part, seeing Akimaru shift his posture to a more defensive position, his lip curling back in a snarl. There was a flash of blonde, a pair of light blue eyes that appeared in a blur.

Naruto barely had time to dodge the attack, as Kakashi shoved him out of the way, before he too jumped into the trees canopy. The large blonde man skidded to a standstill, glaring through half lidded eyes at the other shinobi he had sensed.

Hinata activated her byakugan, while Shikamuru and Ino formed a semi-circle around the large man. Rock lee suddenly jumped down from the trees shadows, startling the surrounded Hebi member at the unexpected member, for he hadn't sensed his chakra presence lurking in the trees. He wondered how many more of them there were that had their chakra's masked... either way, they wouldn't be able to fool Karin.

"Well, well. What do we have here." Kiba growled, leaping onto a higher tree branch to get a better look at the enemy. Next to him Akimaru continued to snarl at the quiet man.

Juugo just smirked. _'So they want to pick a fight do they?' _Juugo glanced up under his lashes, catching Karin's hidden face. She nodded once.

"Okay, so which one of you weaklings is Naruto?" Juugo watched as every shinobi around him flexed their toned muscles, snarling under their breath from the word 'weakling.'

"I'd take better care in choosing your words if i were you. They don't take too kindly to the word weak." A silver haired ninja spoke from behind the small group of ninjas, whom he guessed was Kakashi. As if in agreement, the small semi-circle tightened around his still form, some pulling out kunai and twirling them around their fingers before gripping the hilt in their tight fists.

"Humph. I'm not here to fight." He spoke out in a smooth, unwavering voice. "I'm here for Naruto." There was a moment of silence before a blonde, spiked headed shinobi pushed himself in front of the small group, his eyes never leaving his face.

"Well here I am. Now who the heck are you? Are part of _Sasuke's _group?" he asked, through gritted teeth. Juugo tightened his jaw. _'So this guy is Naruto...'_

Naruto's jaw tightened, and the silver haired ninja quickly glanced at him, his face expressionless. "Are you going to answer or not? 'Cause I've got better things to do than waste my time with the likes of you!" Naruto shouted out impatiently. All he could think about was Sakura. He couldn't feel her chakra, but he knew she was close.

Juugo eyed the spiked, blond headed shinobi warily, his eyes tracing his firm posture and face. He was serious. He smirked.

"So you're after Sakura I see." Juugo watched as the blonde headed shinobi stiffened at the gentle medic's name. Before Naruto could utter a word, Ino burst through the small group to stand beside Naruto, just as Lee and Sai took a firm step forward, their eyes hardening.

"What did you do to her you creep!" she shouted, shaking her fist in the air. Juugo ignored her, staring only at Naruto. Ino went on. "I swear, if I find one scratch on her skin, ill double it on your face, you got that-" Kakashi suddenly appeared the furious blonde, his hand planted over her mouth. Juugo blinked, catching sight of Karin.

"I'd really love to stay and chat, but we have someplace to be-" Juugo suddenly shoved Lee against the tree with his huge bicep, gripping Sai's wrist, and pulling him over his head. He threw out his right foot catching Akimaru in his hind legs, throwing him aside just as Kiba was knocked back, landing on top of Hinata who reached out to catch him before he crashed into a tree..

Karin suddenly burst through the wall of trees, a senbon held in her hand. Kakashi dodged the attack, just as the flamed hair woman gripped Naruto in the shoulder. Karin quickly thrusted the need inside the back of his neck, throwing him unconscious.

Suddenly, the three disappeared, leaving the small group stunned.

"What the hell just _happened_..." Kiba whispered, pulling himself off Hinata. Nobody moved.

* * *

Sakura pushed herself off the ground, and began to sprint away from the smooth, low voice that laughed softly and silently in the cool darkness. There was nowhere she could hide. Nobody to turn to for help. It was just her in the dark abyss. _'There has to be someway out...' _she thought desperately, her breathing coming in sharp, rapid gasps. She couldn't get away fast enough. She was trapped.

Suddenly, she felt a sharp, fiery pain shoot up her leg and to her arms. She fell, cringing against the cool, black floor. She had forgotten about the poison. Biting her lip, Sakura managed to pull herself up once again, ignoring the pain. _'This isn't real...It's all in my head. Genjutsu.'_

But it was much more than that. More than seeing, hearing, and feeling. Because they were her worst fears, coming to life. A soft hiss sounded behind her, and Sakura felt her heart ice over.

Just in front of her was a small spotlight revealing a pair of yellow catlike eyes with black slits running down the center. She froze, that same paralyzing feeling choking her, causing her to drop to her knees. _'This can't be happening! Please...not him.' _The hissing noise grew louder behind her, but she couldn't hear. Time suddenly stopped for her as Orochimaru launched his serpents after her fallen form. The large snakes shot out at her, jaws open, exposing their piercing fangs and toxic venom. They quickly wound around her petite form, twisting through her legs and around her arms, squeezing and hissing in pleasure as they immobilized her body, crushing her in their steel grasp.

All the air in Sakura's lungs left her, and the snakes wound even tighter around her body. _'I've got to do something and fast. But what?' _

"So, little Sakura, we finally meet again." Orochimaru said in a soft voice, seeming almost too loud in the pitch black surroundings she was in. "What seems to be the matter, my dear? You appear to be shaking in fear." She hadn't noticed that her body was quivering under the snakes hold.

"I'm not shaking in_ fear_Orochimaru," she grounded out through clenched teeth, the urge to launch an attack pounding inside her chest, melting the painful ice that once plagued her. "More like..._excitement._" She gripped a kunai from behind her back with a free hand, twirling them around her fingers, before cutting the snakes body away from her. Another snake launched at her, but she quickly over took it with a passing shuriken, leaving the thing to squirm in pain. "Die!"

Orochimaru dodged Sakura's thrown kunai's, flicking his tongue out in enjoyment. Sakura bit the inside of her cheek, trying to hold back a smirk as a single spark flickered from the end of one of her many thrown weapons.

"What the-" Orochimaru shouted, but his voice was cut off just as a stream of bombs went off around him in a circle of flames. More snakes shot out from under his arms, wrapping around his body in order to protect their master from the explosion. "Hmph. What a clever girl. _But_ how about we fight fire with _fire_," he paused to smile thoughtfully, chuckling softly to himself. "After all..mhmm...you're only going to get _burnt_. Ninja Art: Wind release: Great Breakthrough!"

Sakura was abruptly thrown back as an explosion of wind ruptured from Orochimaru's palm. She skidded to a halt, impacting the ground with a muffled thud as she rolled over onto her side. She quickly began to heal herself subconsciously, blood leaking down her jaw. There was suddenly another gust of wind, this one sharper and cooler than the previous burst of airflow. She watched, her pale green eyes growing wider with shock, as the piercing stream of air shot up in flames, intensifying with every passing second.

She swiftly shoved her body away from the rough groove that lined the blazing trail of fire. But she suddenly felt the lick of fire graze across her right leg, and she rolled over on top of her back, a sharp yelp of pain escaping her chapped lips, pushing the rest of herself out of the line of destruction. She quickly began to heal the severe burn marks around the calf of her leg, a snarl twisted on her face. In no time, her injuries were healed, proving just how powerful a med Nin she was. After all, she was training under the legendary Sanin, Tsunade.

She hoisted herself off the ground, just as Orochimaru launched a kunai at her, aiming for one of her vital organs. Before she knew what she was doing, Sakura's foot shot out from underneath her, repeling the weapon away from her.

"My, my. Tsunade has taught her pupil well, I see." Orochimaru said, speaking softly. Sakura subconsciously took a step back, tightening her fist by her side. She continued to pound all of her chakra into the curled fingers, focusing on her one target. _'I've got one shot... lets end this!' _Sakura suddenly launched her attack, her fist a blazing blue. A small smile lifted at the corners of her lips as she caught sight of Orochimaru's stunned expression. She suddenly closed the gap between Orochimaru and herself, her fist landing in the Sanin's locked jaw. She heard it clearly, the sound of bone cracking under her fist, the feel of her harsh impact on his face.

A fierce ripple of air exploded in a gust of wind around the battling pair, a deafening boom cutting in like a whip. Sakura felt her pink locks slap against the side of her face, the earth cracking from underneath her. Then slowly, the dust settled around them, exposing Orochimaru's face, blood trickling in a pool around his body while other, smaller, blotches coated his body still.

There was silence. Sakura continued to stagger, gripping her fist in her other hand as she slowly swaggered toward the broken form. A lock of silver, white hair caught hold of her eyes, and slowly, the face of her opponent fell away, exposing a sharper, more definite facade. Broken glass fell in a small, bell-like chime, a round pair of glasses falling from a prominent nose.

"K-Kabut-o.." Sakura staggered back, her mind still in denial at the face she looked at. That wasn't who she was fighting against. It couldn't be. Impossible. Yet her mind read the dominate features of his being, and soon logic won her over. There was a sudden sting in the back of her calf, forcing Sakura to turn her head away from the limp body before her. _'More snakes?'_

Once again, a pair of flashing yellow eyes shot out from the darkness. She watched, horrified, as the real Orochimaru stepped forward from the clinging darkness, his eyes piercing her heart, turning it back into that painful ice cube it once was. Sakura looked on, her emerald eyes taking everything in. "So you've finally decided to reveal yourself." Sakura whispered in a hoarse, scratchy voice.

Again, every breath of air was sucked out from her body, pinning her to the floor. She looked up, furry burning in her eyes. The smooth scales of the snakes brushed against her skin, leaving a trail of ice in its trail. Sakura looked up, expecting to see another snake slither out from the darkness, but saw nothing. Nothing but the piercing yellow eyes that stayed trained on her sweating face. These weren't Orochimaru's snakes...

A black outline broke out from the darkness, walking slowly to stand next to the glowing pair of yellow eyes, black spikes jutting out from the back of the forms head. He then opened his eyes, exposing the bright, crimson hues she had only dreamed of seeing again. No. These weren't Orochimaru's snakes. They couldn't be... because... they belonged to... '_Sasuke.'_

She watched, her breathing strained and painful now, as another snake slithered out from the hem of Sasuke's shirt, wrapping around his arm to turn it's dark slitted eyes on her. A surge of anger and betrayal coursed through her body now, unbelievably strong. It took hold of her heart, turning all of her memories into deep painful cuts that sliced at her from every direction. One by one, they surged into her head, flashing before her eyes.

She saw Sasuke at the Chunin exams, clutching his shoulder, his fingers turned bone white from the pressure. Then he was in her arms, his jaws locked together as he tried to bite back the pain that burned in his veins. Naruto, lying in the hospital bed, grinning up at her face with a thumbs up, blue eyes shining at green ones. Kakashi, Tsunade, and Lee. Hinata, Ino, Ten-Ten, Kiba, Shino, Shikamaru, Neji, Choji, Sai. She locked her jaw, muscles tensed. They were always there for her, always backing her up when she needed it, and always thankful for her abilities as a med Nin. They weren't here for her now...

Sasuke continued to study her face, his crimson hues never leaving hers. Orochimaru turned around so that his back was to her. "Come Sasuke." he ordered. Sasuke blinked, a smirk pulling up from the corners of his mouth. The snakes around Sakura's frame tightened, stopping the blood in her body.

"Hn." He then turned around to follow Orochimaru, his dark eyes turning back to black from his dark crimson. Sakura struggled for a breath, her lungs screaming for fresh air. Doesn't he know that Orochimaru only wants Sasuke's body for his own? How could he do all of this for _power_? She couldn't take it. Her friends were always there for her. But when had she ever came through for anybody else? She couldn't be there for Naruto when they were attacked by the sound Ninja, she had to rely on others.

It was about time she came through for somebody important to _her_. She was going to stop Sasuke, even at the cost of her life! She began to focus all her chakra in her fist, the blue haze blazing through the small spaces left open around the snakes body. She could feel the energy coursing through her body now. He wasn't going to get away with this!

Sasuke paused, a ripple of air blowing on the nape of his neck. He cocked his head to the side to stare at the pink haired kuniochi, the snakes beginning to lose their hold on her from intense amount of chakra burning their bodies. Sakura suddenly yanked her fist free from the serpents grasp, pounding it to the ground with a loud "_CRACK!"_that sounded like thunder. Sasuke quickly jumped out of the way from the explosion of black rock and dust that shot out at him.

"Sasuke!" Sakura growled out, thin slices of chakra sticking out from her finger tips. '_chakra scalpels?' _Before Sakura had time to launch her attack on the Uchiha, an invisible force knocked her out of the way. She couldn't breath, couldn't move, couldn't see. And then, her eyes opened. She felt the rain on her skin again, and the cold wrap around her body, shaking her. She tried to sit up, but couldn't move. The pain in her limbs pounded behind her ears, making her disoriented and stiff.

_'Where am I? And what is going on!?_' She looked up at the dark rain clouds, the thunder shaking the branches above her head. It was all coming back to her. The fight with Karin; the poison flowing in her body. She clenched her teeth at the memory. _'So that's why I can't move...' _Sasuke, holding her against his warm chest, protecting her from... "Itachi..." she silently whispered.

Suddenly, a pair of red flashing eyes caught her line of vision. The red and black cloak around his body exposing the see through mesh at the top of his shirt. He smirked at her, "You're stronger than I thought you were...," he paused, chuckling softly to himself. "Maybe this poison will weaken you're determination."

"I-It was you. All that time..." she trailed off, unable to speak. When she was able to open her eyes once again, Itachi was not looking at her, but up at the tree's canopy. There, atop a great tree branch, stood Sasuke, his curse mark wrapping around the top half of his shoulder and upper arm.

"Sasuke, no!"

* * *

**(A/N) **Hey you guys, I'm _so sorry_ for this delay!!!! I was gone a week in San Antonio, and had no Internet connection, _and _ive been really tired and have a lot on my mind right now

Ok, so this chapter was really hard for me to write! I have no idea why... And don't worry, I don't plan on giving up on this story! It's too much fun :) I was trying to catch everybody up, and i know I didn't mention much about Kisame and Suigetsu, but their moment is comin up, don't worry :) and then I had this really great idea of what I want to happen next, so all i have to do is find a way to get from here, to there. Yes, its harder than it looks ;) Well, I hope you enjoy this chapter! Summer is comin up, meaning weekly updates! Whoo!

Ok, so please read and review! And as always, thanks for reading my story!! I cant believe the reviews I've been getting :) makes me feel all warm inside, lol :D

Alrighty, PLEASE REVIEW!! (Its not that hard, just say good story!! Or, I like it!) mmkay, have to go, thanks!!!


	10. Strong

**Chapter 10**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto**

**Please Enjoy!**

* * *

Sasuke felt the wind knocked out from his chest, his upper shoulder pounding from the unrealistic pain that began to pulse behind his ears. He suddenly dropped to one knee, his right arm clutching at the curse mark that fought to be revealed. No... This was not the power he was expecting, much less wanting. There was no way in _hell _he was going to allow the curse mark provided by Orochimaru to be the advantage he would need to defeat Itachi! He was going to beat him by himself, with his _own _chakra energy. With his _own power!_ He was finally going to prove to his brother just _ho_w strong he's gotten over the past two and a half years!

'_Oh,...mmhmm, but isn't that why you came to me? For power? Power to defeat your older brother, Itachi?' _came a smooth, velvet voice inside his head.

Sasuke's breath hitched inside his constricted throat, onyx eyes opened wide with shock. _'Orochimaru...' _he growled out. There was another flash of pain that soared up inside his arm and upper shoulder, slowly beginning to cascade down every inch of his body. A small shudder rippled throughout his stiff form as he tried to contain the voice in his head from breaking free.

Sweat began to bead atop Sasuke's brow, and he locked his jaws together, fighting the curse mark from taking control of his body, his figure trembling. Already, he could start to feel the burning, fiery pain, gradually beginning to consume his entire being, eating away at his soul and filling his veins with a surge of dark, unnatural strength and energy. The threatening aura circled around him in a deafening spiral, drawing in the wind, and knocking off limbs from trees, scattering them around his form.

Sasuke clenched his eyes closed in concentration, his knuckles growing white from the effort. '_Damn it Sasuke, fight it!' _he thought back viciously, a new anger passing over him.

Again, a burst of pain shot up through his shoulder, causing him to clench his teeth with the effort of cringing. The dark spiral of energy around him continued to flare up with more and more power, growing stronger and stronger with every passing second. He watched, anger once again scorching the inside of his chest cavity, as the dark black lines wrapped around his chest and upper arm, moving upward to consume his shoulder.

_'Not strong enough Sasuke!'_ he growled out '_I said Fight it!'_

Sasuke's black orbs closed shut, only to be turned to the famous dark, crimson red. He bit the inside of his cheek as a new burning sensation washed over him. He felt the curse mark stop in its track, the black flames pulling back slightly. A smirk began to touch his lips as he felt the strong pulse fade into a light, dull thud behind his ears.

A loud crack of thunder split the silence in half, the rain coming down in a soft, gentle patter that stung Sasuke's bare skin like faint needle pricks from the violent wind that continued to whip around him from all sides. The spiraling air dropped slightly as he once again gained control over Orochimaru's curse mark, when from the shadows darkness, rose a hoarse voice, so soft he almost mistook it for the wind.

"I-Itachi.."

Sasuke paused as the wind around him died down to a soft breeze, almost as soft as the voice who spoke. 'S_he's... awake?' _Sasuke's fists clenched by his side, his teeth grinding together in a firm hard line. _'Damn it. Not good.'_

"You're stronger than I thought you were..." came a smooth velvet voice, coming from the same direction Sakura's voice had. Something inside of him sparked to life. The idea that Itachi, his older brother, .... clan murderer, a dangerous shinobi criminal ranked just as high as him, if not higher, so close...so near Sakura, lit another source of anger inside his core, giving him power he never knew he possessed,... overpowering the pain that continued to range on inside of him.

A soft chuckling stopped Sasuke in his thoughts. "Maybe this poison will weaken you're determination." There was a spear like pain in Sasuke's chest, but he quickly shook it off. He couldn't afford to get distracted right now. He stood there, watching. Waiting for a chance to strike.

Sakura's pale skin glistened from the water droplets that continued to fall from the dark sky, now showing a dim orange highlight from the sun now beginning to rise.

She looked out from her curled position by the tree he placed her under, raw shock apparent in her eyes; her light salmon colored hair matted to her acute face. Sasuke watched, a new, strange emotion coming over him, adding to the surge of anger moving swiftly inside his chest. Her fingers were curled in a firm fist by her side, her face hardening. "I-It was you. All that time..."

_'Mhmm, so, Sakura isn't it...?' _Orochimarru slurred inside his head, a smile touching his voice.

Once more, Sasuke clenched his eyes shut, the wind around him shooting up in a dark, violent spiral, catching the lightning, and throwing it down to earth. The sparks of electricity seemed to dance off the twisting torrent air, flinging itself too and fro around Sasuke's firm stance.

The curse mark once again began to wrap around his shoulder and upper arm, the crackles of lightning touching his skin in a gentle fashion, leaving small red marks wherever they made contact to his bare skin. Sasuke's eyes began to scan the area for Itachi, when a pair of soft green orbs abruptly caught his dark red ones.

Sakura's mouth opened, hot tears beginning to fall from her face, blending in with the gentle raindrops. He watched, obscured in an emotionless shell, as her muscles stiffened, and her body lurched forward in a futile attempt to move towards him.

"Sasuke, no!"

Sakura's weak attempt at a shout echoed in his ears like a dull chime. Itachi stood across from her, eyes the same blazing red as his own. He blinked, once, twice, and then he too began to smirk...

"Sasuke, it seems that you're as weak as ever, having to rely on the curse mark as your line of defense against me." Itachi paused briefly, a low, smooth chuckle filing the tensed silence. "So _little brother_, lets see who the better shinobi _really_ is."

Before Sasuke had time to react, a thin, silver wire wrapped around his body, pinning him to the large trunk behind his back. Sasuke felt the air burst out from his lungs, leaving him gasping for air. Itachi smirked, the wire chord wrapped firmly around his fist. "Fire Release: Dragon Fire Technique!"

Sasuke opened his eyes once more to a violent burst of flames, hurling towards him from the thin wire. Thinking quickly, Sasuke jumped up in the air, causing the wire to loosen just enough so that he could grip the katana secured to his waist. He calmly, but quickly, unsheathed his thin blade, shearing the wire as it went. Acting quickly, Sasuke brought the blade down, his eyes a dark, malicious crimson red. His jaw was set in a firm line, his figure tall and strong, landing in an open field, not too far away from the mountainous cliffs.

Slowly, he brought the tip of his blade down to touch the earth, before he shot it up in the air, and reaching behind him to sheath the blade once more. Itachi watched, his eyes calculating every move his brother made. The lightning continued to travel up and down Sasuke's body, the dark torrent around him settling around his ankles.

Itachi paused, a deep gurgling fear dripping inside his core, only to be washed away by his flash of anger of having been afraid of his little brother_. _Itachi stepped out from the trees shelter, his eyes just as dark as Sasuke's, a serious expression planted on his face. Sasuke looked up, an emotionless facade settled on his smooth alabaster face, one hand on the grip of his weapon while the other rested by his side in a calm manner. He tilted his head up, turning toward Itachi. The wind continued to flare up around him, pushing Itachi's Akatsuki robe behind him in a gust of air.

"Hn. Such futile attacks are useless against me, Itachi," Sasuke said with a hint of indifference creeping inside his voice.

The lightning began to spread out in a wider circle around his firm figure, seeming to almost dance with the fierce wind around his ankles. Itachi continued to watch the scene before him just as a bright flare caught his eyes. _'Dawn already. It seems that our time together has come to a close, Sasuke.' _A slow smirk began to spread across the younger Uchiha's face as he slowly brought his hand out before his chest, held away from his body and the weapons by his side. His eyes never strained away from Itachi's face, even as the crackle of lightning reached out to touch his the tips of his fingers. A light blue glow gradually began to form in the palm of his hand, gathering the sparks of lightning around him in a tight ball of electricity.

Itachi shut his eyes in a smirk, clearly amused by Sasuke's determination. "Hmph. You'll have to do better than that, Sasuke. Its time to end this and claim what I came here for!" A dark torrent of chakra broke out from Itachi, flaring up behind him in a powerful wave. "Now, die, little brother!"

Sasuke took a firm step forward, the crackle of lightning growing louder and louder, growing in size and power. "Hn. I don't think so." Sasuke raised his chidori above his head, breaking the crackling ball of lightning into thousands of individual senbon. Sasuke raised his chin up, his sharingan locked into Itachi's cold, expressionless eyes. He stood there, the torrent of wind billowing at his black and read cloak, unfazed. "Ninja art: Chidori Senbon!"

Sasuke watched as the senbon soared over his head, shooting out as fast as light itself towards his brother and clan murderer. With his sharingan, he guided the lightning senbons path as it cut through the air with precise aim, heading straight for all of Itachi's vital points.

There was a loud '_Boom!' _followed by the uproar of grime and dirt as the senbon made impact with the earth. Rocks continued to fall as the chidori needles made individual cracks in the ground, the split earth stretching onward until it hit the base of the large mountainous cliffs. All went quiet.

Time seemed to stop.

There was a loud crack, followed by the deep rumble of thunder.

The ground shook. The wind ceased to blow. Sasuke paused, a cool hand wrapped around his ankle. He saw his brother, standing upright before him, hands held in front of his chest in a hand seal. Around him, small scratches coated his body, his cloak torn around the edges in some places.

"Kisame, now!" Itachi called. Kisame roared out from the earth, tearing his sword away from the cloth that covered its sharp edges. Sasuke ripped away from his tight grasp, pushing himself away from the new threat as he continued to gather more lightning in his palm, thanks to the storm over head. "Damn you!" Sasuke cursed under his breath, lurching his hand down, aiming for Kisame's blind spot. "Chidori!"

Kisame barely had time to turn around in order to block the attack. Soon after, a sharp pain in his shoulder as well as his upper arm began to produce an intense amount of pain, having only been grazed by the painful electricity. He pulled back sharply, cursing under his breath. Sasuke walked up to him so that they were mere inches from each other. Kisame turned his icy glare towards the young Uchiha, a warning that he rarely showed to his prey. Sasuke ignored, knowing that he had the upper hand in this battle.

Sasuke lowered his voice into a deadly whisper, having lost all patience with Itachi's silly games. "Scram. Next time you _wont_be so lucky. Get the hell out of my sight... before I decide to kill you." He turned, straightening up, his sharingan spinning in a slow circle around his pupil. The curse mark began to draw back, inch by inch as the dark torrent of chakra energy made itself visible to all once more.

"Hmph. So you're fast." Kisame seemed to purr. "Not like that mist shinobi, Suigetsu." Sasuke arched an eyebrow at the name, but said nothing. Already, he could sense the ninjas chakra presence rapidly approaching. _'Hmph. So it looks like Itachi was able to contact his team mate.' _Kisame, ignoring the threat fsasu, brought his sword forward, his eyes glowing with a rare pleasure. He could easily take down a young adolescent such as Sasuke. All he had to do was slice through his body with his sharp sword, and-

"Enough, Kisame. Our mission was not to kill, but to retrieve the girl. Dawn is breaking. It's time to take what we came here for, and _leave_." Itachi said in a sharp warning tone, annoyance thick in his voice. Already, Kisame had lost the spark in his eyes, a frown pulling down from the corners of his mouth.

A small sigh broke out from the gilled shinobi's lips in a sign of disappointment. Bringing the hilt of his sword up, Kisame easily jammed the tip of the blade into the earth, using the weapon as a wall to lean against. "Hmph. I don't see what the big deal is, you're going to kill him anyways, so why not do it -" Kisame abruptly stopped, catching the deadly glare coming from Itachi. Kisame sighed again, pulling up on his sword, the cloth wrapping around the sharp edges once again.

"Whats the point in even fighting him if we can't even kill..." Kisame complained under his breath. Itachi ignored his comment, having eyes only for his little brother. Already, Sasuke's blade was drawn, the lightning bolts coiling around the thin edge in a deadly spiral. He continued to stare out through his expressionless shell, undeterred by the two Akatsuki members standing before him.

"I already told you, you don't have a choice in the matter, Sasuke." Itachi said, sighing. "Give it up."

"Hn. Ill decide whether I have a choice or not." Sasuke countered, a dangerous edge in his tone. He paced over to where he was blocking Itachi's view of the pink haired medic, shifting his posture in a more defensive form. There's no way he was going to let Itachi get a hold of Sakura in the condition she was in right now.

Itachi closed his eyes in a sigh, clearly annoyed. "I see you're not going to make this any easier than it has to be." Itachi opened his eyes once more, pulling his hands up to his chest in a hand sign Sasuke had never seen before. "Ninja Art: Scattering One Thousand Crows Technique!"

Suddenly, a flock of crows rushed at Sasuke's form, twisting and twirling around the torrent of air building up once more around his body. Sasuke cursed under his breath as the two Akatsuki members disappeared inside the flock of birds. Annoyed, Sasuke brought his katana up over his head, focusing all of his chakra on the tip of his blade. A large, purple, star-like ball began to form, lighting up the sky in large burst of dark energy.

He could feel the curse mark drawing back now, loosing its strength as he continued to pour more and more of his chakra into the blade. With precise timing due to his sharingan, Sasuke thrusted the edge of his sword downward, cutting through the murderer of crows with the sharp electricity.

Everything stopped.

The crows suddenly dispersed, knocked away by the sheer power of the blow as it cut swiftly through the air. The earth shot up around him, leaving a deep scar in the soft grasses lining the open field. A cloud of smoke began to pool around the edges of his feet, as each and every damned crow turned into a puff of smoke. It wasn't long before the crimson glow of Sasuke's sharingan broke through the crow barrier thrown by Itachi. Already, Sasuke could feel the faint trace of Sakura's chakra beginning to fade away. His heart gave way once more before he thrusted the feeling aside, turning back into his emotionless facade.

"Sakura!" Sasuke shouted, not waiting for an answer. "Damn it Itachi!" Sasuke sprinted forward toward the tree line, his eyes straining to see the light pink hair of Sakura. He was abruptly stopped by a smooth voice echoing from the wind, soft and faint, but still there. "Don't worry Sasuke. We'll take good care of your little cherry blossom." The voice suddenly paused, a smile creeping into his words. "Until next time, _little brother_."

Sasuke thrusted his katana down, deep inside the earth, his eyes a deep blood red. "Don't underestimate me, Itachi. You _wont _get away. I _will _find you," he growled, low and dangerous. "And I _will kill you." _Behind him, the silent chuckle began to fade away. The sun was just beginning to break through part of the clouds for the first time in days when he felt the small chakra presence of Suigetsu begin to pick up speed once more. A few seconds passed before the sound of footsteps sounded in his ears.

"Why that _BASTARD_, where the hell did he go, running away like the coward he is..."

Sasuke glanced up at the silver-haired ninja behind him, the smell of blood filling his nose. Suigetsu cursed, one arm groping the other as a pool of blood trickled down the side of his injured limb, coating the grass in tiny droplets of crimson blood as he stood up, leaning against a nearby tree for support. There, sat a deep cut reaching up toward his neck in a "V" across his shoulder, and a little ways down the side of his arm. Other, smaller cuts were visible as well, the clothing worn and ripped in some places, but still intact.

Suigetsu began to slowly walk towards Sasuke, taking in his condition with a slow nod. He then glanced at the curse mark with a disconcerted eye, watching as it began to mold back into the base of his neck. "So, it looks like I'm not the only one who got a little beat up, but thankfully, I managed to snag a little piece of flesh from that-" Suigetsu paused mid sentence from his ramblings, not seeing the pink haired medic that he had become fond of in the few days he'd known her.

He turned his head to ask, but thought the better of it, watching as Sasuke's face hardened with a deep scowl. There seemed to be a dark aura about him coming off his body in dangerous sparks. '_Damn, this doesn't look good...' _Suigetsu thought silently, holding his tongue for the first time in a while.

Sasuke gripped the katana that was shoved in the earth, swiftly pulling it up into the air, and then sliding it back into its sheath. A few seconds of silence passed between the two, each acknowledging the other quietly.

"We're leaving," he said to Suigestu after a few more seconds of silence passed, feeling the questioning stare he seemed to be giving him. Suigetsu closed his eyes in understanding. _'Then it's true...' _Sasuke continued on without looking up, as he heard no objections from the other shinobi; not that he was in the mood to hear them anyways. He had just lost to his older brother. _Again_... and not only did he lose his battle to Itachi, but he lost the one person he deeply cared for. Sakura.

And now she's with _him... _and the other Akatsuki members. The most dangerous shinobi known all across the nations, ...and feared by all. The one person he had tried all his life to keep away from his old team mates, Naruto and Sakura, had finally shown up. Sasuke felt the empty cavity in his chest swell from the loss. He was going to make Itachi pay. With. His. _Life._

"Get the others. Sakura's in danger. We're going after her."

"Hmph. Right." Suigetsu adjusted the sword on his back, ripping out a piece of cloth from the under the sleeves of his black cloak. Gently, he began to wrap the piece of fabric around the deep cut in his shoulder, before tying it in a tight knot in order to stop the bleeding. _'It's a shame Sakura's not here right now. I'm sure she could have fixed me up good as new. And now, I have to actually touch Karin...actually bite her... in order to get healed.' _A small quiver ran down Suigetsu's spine just from the thught of it. '_Damn it... better hurry up and just get it over with.' _Satisfied with his wound, he turned his back on Sasuke, disappearing inside the trees protection with nothing more than a small wave as he left.

* * *

The first thing Naruto noticed was the feeling of rough fabric against his wrist, scraping and scratching at his bare skin. His head felt light headed and heavy; as if he were heavily medicated on some strong drugs, causing him to feel dizzy and unstable. The wind helped to push back his hair away from his face, blowing away all the raindrops from his clothes and body. He wanted to say something, but couldn't feel his lips. _'Maybe if i opened my eyes...'_ he thought warily, straining to push back the heavy lids that stuck to him like sticky tree sap. _'Damn it, Naruto!'_ he thought, agitation and frustration growing with every passing second. '_What the hell did you get yourself into...'_

The wind suddenly died down as he felt the rough impact of earth ram into his body, setting off a muffled growl from his lips. A pair of small hands suddenly grabbed at the back of his head, using his golden locks as a way to thrust his head up into the air. _'Damn it, that hurts!' _he cursed silently, still unable to open his mouth in order to speak. A soft echo began to ring in his ears, making him that much more delusional. He struggled at the binds behind his back in order to break free, when a sharp pain ricocheted through his body. He bit his lip to keep from shouting, causing it to bleed, but ignored it. He had more important things to worry about right now.

Across from him, he could hear two people arguing with one another, their voices morphing into each other so that he couldn't understand what they were saying. The pair of hands that gripped at the nape of his neck disappeared, and his upper body fell over so that he was on his side. He listened even more closely now, trying to catch anything that would lead him to who his captors were. Slowly, the two voices began to separate into different identities.

"I thought this was what he wanted!" a female voice shouted out, sounding frustrating and a little annoyed. "Isn't that the reason why he kept her in the first place? You heard him yourself Suigetsu, remember?"

There was a large groan coming from the male voice he had previously heard, the type that said 'You have _got _to be kidding me...' "No you idiot, don't you get it? These two used to be on a squad together! Oh man, ...not to mention the reason why he was out here in the first place! There's bound to be trouble if you show up with him. Besides, i think that's only _part _of the reason why Sasuke kept her-"

There was a sharp intake of breath that came from the female. "What are you getting at Suigetsu? You don't _really _think that he would fall for somebody as-" She was suddenly cut off by the male voice, Suigetsu.

"Karin, we don't have time to deal with your jealousy issues. Besides, he's stronger than he looks, and you should know better than any of us, since you're able to read another persons chakra." Suigetsu turned away from karin to look at the bound shinobi near Juugo. "Don't forget the whole reason why the Akatsuki are after him." he replied sharply in a warning tone. "This guy's the real deal."

"Hmph, so is that why they took that good-for-nothing weakling off our hands? Fine with me. We can hand them_ both _over to the Akatsuki for all I care. Let_ them _deal with the trash." Naruto winced as he felt a sharp kick in his side, making a silent promise to bash the person over the head when he was free, whoever they were.

"Karin, you're really asking for it, aren't you?" Suigetsu said with a sigh, shaking his head side to side. "Whatever. We need to hurry back. Lets go." A strong pair of hands suddenly gripped at the top of Naruto's black and orange jacket, carrying him under a strong pair of arms, knocking the breath out of him.

"Who cares, as long as I get Sasuke all to myself." Karin piped up smiling. There was another groan coming from the pair of hands holding him, a deeper male voice he hadn't heard before. "Can't you think of anything else besides Sasuke? Damn you're annoying."

"I'm sorry, I didn't quite catch that, Juugo, why dont you repeat it for me." Karin growled, her eyes holding a dangerous glint to them. "Save the fighting for later you two, time to go." Suigetsu called out, his voice faded as if he were somewhere far away. "Now!" he added sharply when nobody moved. Finally, Karin hopped up after the silver haired ninja, mumbling curses all along the way.

'_No wonder Sasuke isn't very fond of her,'_Juugo thought back, still laughing over Karins jealousy. _'It's hard to even be near her for more than 5 minutes...' _Juugo sighed once again before reluctantly beginning to follow behind the other two shinobi, having caught up with them.

The wind suddenly picked up again, just as it slowly began to dawn on Naruto just _who_ exactly that '_weakling' _was. Haruno Sakura of the Leaf Village.

* * *

Sakura woke to the soft chime of heavy metal, the subtle rattle almost painful to her ears. She couldn't move, having cuffs on her wrists, tight enough to almost cut off her circulation, and leaving her dangling against a rough, dusty wall. She slowly opened her eyes, straining to catch a glimpse of where she was, but found the place to be as pitch as black. There was nothing but darkness.

Once her head began to clear, a slight, musky smell came over her senses, almost like that of mold. She tried to breath through her mouth instead, but found that there was a thick piece if cloth pressed against her lips, keeping her from yelling or screaming. Not that she had the strength to do that anyways.

She could hear a small dripping sound near her, falling silently to land in a puddle, the splashing noise echoing in a slow, steady rhythm. She stood there, suspended in the air, listening. Waiting.

There was a dull ache in her upper arms, from having been hanging in the air for so long, unable to give her limbs a rest from the constant pull on her muscles. She was now beginning to feel the horrific affect from the purge she had accomplished in order to rid herself of most of the poison in her body. It had left her feeling fatigued and nauseous, draining her of all her remaining energy and strength.

It was all she could do just to keep her eyes open, the tug of sleep pulling her down into a dreamless state. Already, her previous injuries were starting to make themselves known to her once again.

Her stomach began to cramp up inside of her body, causing her to release a small groan as she was unable to suppress the pain. _'When was the last time I ate?' _she asked herself quietly, a headache beginning to thrum on the inside her head. She had forgotten that her stomach had been empty for nearly 4 days, and hunger pains were now eating away at her.

There was another moment of silence that passed as Sakura slowly began to feel every ache, sting, and cramp in her body. '_Maybe longer...'_she added after a while of thought, another violent cramp churning inside the empty cavity of her stomach. '_Who knows how long I've been unconscious...' _suddenly Sakura's stomach lurched, causing Sakura to cringe against the cool surface behind her. _"Damn it! Get a grip Sakura!"_

A small shiver began to crawl up her spine, the cold now beginning to seep into her core, draining all the life that was once sustained inside her. Her heart beat began to pulse behind her ears, and she struggled under the tight embrace bound to her wrists, but found that her wrists weren't the only ones under arrest by the coarse metal. Her ankles were also locked together, as well as her knees.

She struggled a bit more under the metals tight grip, but soon gave up, not having the energy to fight.

_'Damn it all. Now what the hell am I supposed to do?' _She silently asked herself, feeling frustrated and vulnerable, as she was unable to do anything else but think of things to do inside her head. Even the voice residing inner Sakura inside her mind sounded tired and strained.

A few seconds passed before the sound of footsteps began to make their way towards her, sharp and staccato against the hard floor. She gradually pulled her head up, not knowing what to expect, taking her eyes from she was guessing was the ground. The footsteps abruptly stopped a couple of feet away from where she hung helplessly.

Inside, she felt her body became stiff and rigid under her muscles, unable to identify who the person was standing in front of her. She remained quiet as an unnatural fear washed over her body. A few seconds later, her breathing suddenly stopped, hitched inside her constricted throat, her heart beat beating rapidly in her chest. It was like whoever it was in front of her was _choking_ her, just by standing so near to her body. So close, the she could almost see the outline of his body in the pitch of black.

There was a loud splashing noise as the person stepped into a large puddle, followed by the shuffling sound of feet as the person closed his advance towards her.

Sakura's muscles stiffened even more when she realized that the individual was standing right beside her. He was close enough so that she could hear his slow, quiet breathing, the heat barely brushing against her face. A few seconds later, Sakura felt the cool touch of someones hand gripping her upper arm.

Sakura's eyes grew wide as she lurched to the side, as far as the metal chains would let her, trying to get away from whoever the person was next to her, but he easily tugged her back. The sharp smell of alcohol suddenly pierced the inside of Sakura's nose as she felt cool liquid brush against her upper arm; the man still holding her in a tight grip, though not as tight as the metal clasps on her wrists, ankles, and knees.

Soon after, Sakura felt a small sting where the alcohol was, the small pressure-like pinch on her limb drawing away as the cool hand released her.

Almost immediately afterwards, a sudden, sharp, unimaginable pain began to scorch her body, inside and out. It rocketed through her entire frame, as if a sharp flamed wire was suddenly jammed into her bones, twisting and turning, intensifying the pain that much more. She opened her mouth to scream, but her cries were swallowed up by the cloth tied securely over her mouth. If it wasn't for the chains holding her up, she would have collapsed to the floor and shriveled up into a tiny ball in a corner somewhere. The lock's around her ankles and knees kept her from thrashing out, and ultimately harming the person next to her.

She barely noticed when the man began to walk away from her form, now quivering from the intense amount of pain growing inside of her. Hot tears began to sting the inside of her eyes, as she was forced to endure the burning sensation alone, without anything to help ease her suffering.

Screaming helped a little, though they were muffled by the cloth clamped over her mouth. She continued to struggle against the strong bounds on her body, the once soft chiming from the chains now louder than ever. The metal was once again rubbing against her bare skin, and her sore arms were pounding behind her ears, causing her to wince.

Weak with effort, Sakura stopped her futile attempt at escape, the rocketing pain still growing inside of her. It invaded her mind, keeping her from retreating there as a way to break free from all of the agony coursing through her rigid form. Sweat began to bead atop her brow, her stomach lurching, and weak body begging for a release from all the intense suffering. She shrank back, pressing what little part of her body she could against the cool surface behind her.

Finally, the pain became too much for her to bear, and she blacked out. There, she hung limply, the rattling noise dieing down as the steady splash of water took hold of the silence once again.

"Hmm. She lasted longer than I expected," came a male voice from within the shadows. "You were right. She is strong."

"Yes, so it would seem," came a smoother male voice somewhere near the entrance of where the single hostage hung, alone in the dark.

"So, you really think this is going to work?" The first male asked, his voice filled with skepticism. There was a moment of silence as both men stared at the pink haired medic, deep in thought.

"Yes. Im sure of it. She's the only one."

"And if it doesn't work?"

"Hmph. Well, than I wont have a choice. He'll have to die."

Both men turned to walk away from the limp medic, leaving silence in its place once again.

* * *

Kakashi watched as the thin red highlight of dawn began to touch the edges of the sky, the dark rainclouds now breaking apart to expose little spotlights of the suns rays. He stood there in the highest tree branch, deep in thought, as the others slept under his watch, unable to do anything else other than restore their strength. First he lost Sasuke, back when he was just a kid. Then... Sakura disappeared. And now Naruto.

He lost all of them... all of his students were gone. And there's no telling where they've disappeared to. Kakashi jerked his head up suddenly at the sound of rustling leaves coming from behind him. From the leaves shadows, a small brown pug stepped out, his tail dragging against the wet bark, head down, unable to meet the copy ninjas anxious face. Worry began to ebb into Kakashi's features as the dog continued to stare at the ground, his features grave.

"Well?" Kakashi pressed after a moment of silence had passed. Pakun raised his head up as he sat down on his hind legs. He stared at Kakashi for a long moment before he finally tilted his head away to look at the sun rise, now turning a deep purple and pink. "I couldn't track them. There's no scent for me to follow, no trail for me to trace." The small dog dropped his head once again. "I'm sorry."

"So that's it then?"

Both Kakashi and Pakun jumped from the unexpected voice behind them. They both turned their heads to see Hinata glaring at the two, followed by Ino, who was awoken by the Hyuga girl, rubbing her eyes sleepily. "We're just going to give up on them?" Hinata's eyes softened a bit as she walked over to stand next to her team leader, Kakashi. Ino stopped rubbing her eyes, and turned her attention to the two shinobi in front of her.

Kakashi heaved out a heavy sigh. "Hinata, there's nothing we can do now. Naruto and the others could be anywhere. We have to think about this ratio-"

"So because of one little set back, you're just going to..._give up_?" Ino cut in sharply. "Have you already forgotten what you taught us all,... all those years ago, when we were just Genin? 'It's true that the people who break the rules are scum...but, those who _abandon their friends_ are _worse _than scum.'"

Kakashi turned his head away from the two girls, a sudden pang growing in his chest. He heaved out another heavy sigh. "There are some situations such as these, Ino, when there is nothing anybody can do to help those who need help. My job is to see that everyone is kept safe. If we go off putting everyone else in danger for the sake of two shinobi-"

"They aren't just your ordinary shinobi, Kakashi. They're the new generation. The next Sanin. And there in danger, and they need _our help_." Kakshi stared at the Hyuga girl for a long while. "Yes, I know you're right." he finally replied. _'But what can we do at this point?' _

Ino thrummed her fingertips against the bark at her back, deep in thought. "But... why would two of Sasuke's team mates take Naruto in the first place? I mean, It's not like they would gain anything from it...right?"

A few minutes passed, and nobody moved. Nobody even dared to breath, as all three pairs of eyes suddenly lightened up with realization. Finally, the small puzzle began to click into place. Hinata gasped, her eyes opened wide in shock. "You don't think-"

"Sasuke left Konoha in search for Orochimmaru for one reason only: To gain power. Power to destroy a certain someone. Uchiha Itachi of the Akasuki." Kakashi murmured from closed lids. Ino stepped forward to stand next to Hinata, her baby blue eyes hardening. "So he took Sakura, in order to get to Naruto." Ino began, her voice growing into that of a whisper. "And once he had Naruto-"

"Then Sasuke would eventually run into Itachi. Sasuke wouldn't have to search for the Akasuki hideout just to seek out the only brother he has, seeing how Itachi was in charge of capturing the nine tailed fox." Kakashi concluded. _'Everything makes sense now..' _

_"_So.. we don't need to go looking around the whole nations for the those two, but just find Sasuke and his group, and then we'll find the others." Hinata murmured, her eyes lighting up. Kakashi shook his head side to side, eyes still closed in thought. "It may be too late for that..." he began.

"Then what do you suggest we do?" Ino asked, annoyance thick in her voice. She was tired of just standing around doing nothing. It was time to get Forehead girl and the 'Great Knuckle head' back home, where they belong. Although Ino was ashamed to even admit it, she missed the sweet smile and bubbly personality of the two shinobi, though she would never tell anybody that. Not even on her _life._

"Something may have happened to the two by now, so instead of searching for Sasuke...we're going to track down the Akatsuki hideout."

Both shinobi stared at the silver haired ninja wide eyed, Hinata reaching up to grip the edge of her jacket with a tight fist, Ino with her jaw dropped, flinching back towards Hinata. Pakun was the first to speak. "K-Kakashi, there's no telling where that place could be! And even if you could find it, which is highly unlikely, there's no way we could take on the Akasuki alone."

Ino nodded her head in agreement. "Pakun's got a point. Just look at what they did to the Sand village! And there were only TWO of them." Kakashi looked up at the frightened blonde headed girl evenly, his face hard and serious, betraying no emotion what so ever. "I didn't say we would fight the Akasuki. I would _never_ put my team in danger like that. But, if what rumors lead us to believe, we may just be able to track them down. If we catch sight of one of them, we do not attack, but follow. We _will _find them, and we _will _get Naruto and Sakura back. I swear it."

Hinata straightened her shoulders, lifting her chin up in a very firm, intimidating manner, her long raven-black locks moving along with the soft wind, fists clamped tightly by her side. She cast her silver eyes down, away from others, unable to meet their gazes. "Naruto was always there for me when I was in trouble, and he never gave up, no matter what." She paused, pulling her face up, meeting every ones gazes now, her eyes blazing with raw determination. "Now, finally, I am able to return the favor! After so long, watching him struggle, and getting stronger because of it, I vow that I _will _pull through for him, even at the cost of my own life."

Hinata slowly began to walk towards the copy ninja until they were level with each other, crossing her arms in front of her chest. "So..." Hinata let her words trail off, as she too turned to look at the warm sun now breaking through the clouds, a smile planted on her soft face. "Where do we begin?"

Kakashi slowly began to smile under his mask, just as Ino stood up and began to walk over to where Pakun stood, hands on her hips. She too held a small smirk on her lips, her light blue eyes sparkling in the light; her blonde ponytail swaying with the cool breeze as she gazed at the two ninja in front of her.

There was a long pause, then Kakashi turned around, facing Ino and the small pug. "We wake the others."

"I'm already on it," Ino replied happily, winking before jumping down. Hinata remained where she was, deep in thought. This time, she was going to be the one to rescue Naruto, instead of it being the other way around. She owed him at least that much. '_Please be alright... Naruto...'_

Kakshi squatted down beside the small pug, gesturing for him to do the same. "Pakun, you know what to do. I need you to go to lady Tsunade. Explain to her that there's been a change of plans." The dog tilted his head to the side, eyes questioning. "But, wont you need me here to help track down the Akatsuki?" The copy ninja shook his head side to side in a firm gesture. "No, not yet. This is more important right now. The last thing we need is the Anbu searching for us. They'll only get in the way."

"Alright then. Take care, Kakashi."

Kakashi waited until the dog was out of sight before he too jumped down to the bottom of the trees, all the while thinking of a way to explain everything as quickly as possible to the others. He too was eager to get moving.

* * *

Sasuke opened his dark black orbs to the group of people standing before him, the sun's rays dancing off his white unbuttoned shirt as the light wind brushed back his raven-black bangs. He continued to stand there, eyes locked on the spiked blonde head of Naruto Uzumaki before turning sharply in the direction of where Suigetsu stood silently.

The silver haired ninja folded his arms over his chest, not daring to meet the eyes of his squad leader. Slowly, Sasuke began making his way over toward the four, his eyes dark. On the outside, he remained calm and expressionless, a blank shell giving away nothing. On the inside, however, there was a number of mix emotions, one between fury and irritation. And right now, he wasn't sure which one he should be expressing.

Sasuke quickly unsheathed his thin katana, placing the tip to Karin's throat as he closed the gap between him and the small group. He watched as she flinched back, the other two watching his every move with wary eyes. _'That's good," _Sasuke thought back with a smirk, "_They _should _be afraid right now."_

_"_Karin. Explain to me why you brought Naruto here."

Karin took a half step back, the tip of the sword now touching the jugular vein on the side of her neck. Nobody moved. One wrong step, and she would be dead within two minutes from loss of blood. "Now," Sasuke ordered in a threatening tone, losing his patience.

"What the hell Sasuke! Isn't this what you wanted, to capture Sakura in order to get to Naruto?"

"What!?"

Sasuke looked down to see the light blue eyes of Naruto glaring at him from underneath his lashes. If it weren't for the special chakra rope tied around him, made to contain Naruto's chakra from breaking loose, Sasuke was sure he would have lunged at him with the intent to kill. "You BASTARD! You used Sakura for your own damn ambitions, and only to get to ME?"

Sasuke continued to stare at the blonde, unfazed by his words. Suigetsu turned his head from Naruto to Sasuke's face, watching carefully for any signs of emotion. If his theory was proved correctly, then Sasuke would be part human after all. Karin too watched Sasuke's face, her eyes sharp and lips pressed together into a thin line.

"Hn. Naruto, you think too highly of yourself as always." Slowly, Sasuke drew back his sword from Karin's neck, placing it back into the black sheath by his side. Karin exhaled a breath she didn't even now she was holding, relaxing her body a bit more now that she was out of danger. "The only purpose you would have served here was to draw Itachi straight to me. The only thing that matters now is his death; to avenge my clan and clear the Uchiha's name."

"Then why take Sakura of all people! After everything you put her through, you add this to it."

"Idiot. With her here, I knew you would come running to her rescue. It would seem that nothing has changed with either of you. Sakura is still as weak as when I left her, and you're still the annoying immature Naruto."

Naruto let out a sharp growl, unable to break free, the rope sending a sharp staccato shock through his body in order to contain him. "Sakura's _twice_as strong as the heartless bastard you turned out to be. But I guess that's to be expected, seeing you were trained under that slimy snake you call _sensei._ You have know idea what she's been through."

Naruto's words sent a sharp stab in Sasuke's chest, like an itch you just can't scratch. For a moment, his eyes flickered into an angry flare, only to be obscured by his expressionless mask. "Orochimarru is dead now. As for Sakura, she's gone."

Sasuke watched as Naruto's blue eyes slowly widened as the truth began to dawn on him. "You mean-"

"Itachi took her in order to lure me to him, just as I did to you. Only thing is, it didn't seem like Itachi was after you at all, even though he was assigned to capture you and the nine tailed fox within."

"That doesn't matter now! Sakura's in the hands of the strongest and most dangerous shinobi known throughout the lands. She doesn't stand a chance against all of them combined!"

"Hn. I know."

The other three members of Sasuke's group just stared at the two ninja before them, eyes wide with shock. Out of everything that could have happened between them, this was the most unexpected outcome of them all. Suigetsu closed his eyes in a small gesture, smiling. _'Well, they were team mates after all.'_

Naruto once again began to struggle underneath the ropes tight hold on his body. As futile as it was, he knew that he had to be doing _something. _He couldn't just sit around while Sakura was in the hands of the Akatsuki, a hostage to do as they will.

A moment of silence passed between the group, before Sasuke finally heaved out a sigh of annoyance; walking over to where Naruto sat with his back towards him. Naruto had been so caught up in trying to escape, he hadn't noticed that Sasuke had cut the ropes loose, giving him access to do what ever he pleases.

'_What an idiot.' _Shaking his head side to side, Sasuke turned away from the stunned blonde, walking forward towards the trees nearby branches. "Hn. Suigetsu, Juugo, Karin, lets go."

Karin stood stony still, gazing out towards the blond who stood with his shoulders squared to Sasuke, eyes wary. "S-So that's it then? You're just going to let him go?"

Sasuke tilted his head to the side so that he could glance back at Karin. "I no longer need him. Itachi has left to go hide somewhere in the Akastuki layout. I refuse to let my brother live any longer. The time has come for his death, and I _will _kill him."

"Then I'm coming with you." Everybody turned to stare at the blonde. "Who the hell invited _you_to tag along with us?" Karin spat out, infuriated. Suigetsu shot his eyes to where Naruto stood, warning him. "I wouldn't push your luck, kid. You're still breathing after all." Then, in a grave tone, he added, "Don't take it for granted."

Juugo kept his eyes cast down, letting his other team mates handle the situation. He had other things on his mind that required his attention. '_So Sakura was kidnapped again, only this time by Sasuke's older brother... Uchiha Itachi of the Akatsuki.'_Juugo shook his head, remembering the sight of Karin. _'...Karin _was _asking for it though. I'm sure Sakura could have done more damage... after all, she is a Medic nin. She must have learned where all of the vital organs were located in the human body.'_

Juggo mentally nodded his head, his face grave. _'There's no doubt about it. Karin is _definitely _up to something... The _real_ question is,_ what exactly is she up to?_'_

Naruto ignored the comments said by the other two ninja around him, having eyes only for Sasuke. "How do I know you wont just leave Sakura to die in the hands of the Akatsuki?"

Sasuke felt a pang crawl up inside him. Growling, he quickly pushed it out, turning his icy eyes on the spiked blonde now walking towards him. "Naruto, if you want to live, then I suggest you go back home. This is none of your concern."

"The _hell _it is! You think you can just take one of the most important people out of my life, and just tell me that its _none of my concern?! _I'm. Coming," he replied sharply, a snarl painted on his acute face. "This is all your fault why this whole thing happened in the first place. If you wanted me that badly, you should have just confronted me."

Sasuke stood silently, the other three looking at him with caution. Finally, he let out a slow sigh, and turned away from the sharp blue eyes that continued to graze at his back. "Just stay the hell out of my way," Sasuke growled out, low and dangerous. "You got that?" Not waiting for a reply, Sasuke jumped up into the trees branches in the direction Itachi took off with Sakura in his arms. Just the mental image of his older brother touching her was enough to set his blood boiling.

Naruto smirked, a warm feeling washing over him despite everything that had happened. It would seem that he and Sasuke would be working together as a team for the time being, just like in their Genin days.

Little did they know, a small puzzle piece began to fall in place inside the broken jiggsaw puzzle wrapped around his emotions, filling a small hole Sasuke never knew was there. He thought that he had cut all the ties that drew him to Konoha, forgetting all the friendships he once shared, forgetting the past, and riding himself of all emotions. All emotions except the hate that continued to grow inside, turning him into a darker, more menacing person until he thought himself no longer human. But some emotions are just _too_ strong, _too_ tight, to ever undo completely.

_'Just hang in there, Sakura. We're coming for you. Me _and _Naruto, together.'_

* * *

**(A/N) **Hey! :)) I'm so so so so so so SO sorry for the month long delay! So, I made this chapter a little bit longer than usual, as my way of apologizing. Over 1,ooo words longer than the previous chapter! I hope you enjoyed it!! haha, ya, well it looks like this story is taking off, FINALLY! :) but don't worry, I only have like 3 more days of school left, and then I'm out for the summer. My teachers are work aholics by the way.

So, I wonder whats going to happen to Sakura? And It looks as if Naruto and Sasuke have teamed up together. Hmm...I wonder how Karin feels about this as well. Well, you will just have to wait for the next update. I could tell you that it will be between a month to two, but then again, it could be longer or shorter. I'm not very good with deadlines so it would seem. BUT, there will be another update.

I wasn't really happy with the beginning of the story, but the ending I like :)) I dont know.. It seemed just a liiittle too confusing, so dont be afraid to ask me any questions about it if you're unsure of what really happened. I didnt really edit that part either. I got tired of reading it after a while, Lol. So please tell me of any mistakes you found in that first part so that I can fix that up right away.

Until the next update!! And thank you all for reading my story!! Please Review!! And again, Thank You! :))


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